Sialic acid content of low-density lipoprotein in women with coronary artery disease

A low sialic acid content in low-density lipoprotein (LDL) has been associa ted with coronary artery disease (CAD) in studies that have included mostly male subjects. We compared the sialic acid-to-apolipoprotein B ratios of t otal LDL and its subfractions in middle-aged women with CAD (CAD+, n = 22) with those ratios in healthy female control subjects (CAD-, n = 11), CAD+ s ubjects had a lower sialic acid ratio in total LDL and in its subfractions as compared with results in CAD- subjects. In total, light, and dense LDL, the sialic acid ratio was negatively correlated with the respective cholest erol and phospholipid concentrations, and in very dense LDL, it was negativ ely correlated with triglyceride concentration. In multivariate analysis, C AD and LDL cholesterol contributed to the explanation of the variability of LDL sialic acid ratios. In summary, a low sialic acid-to-apolipoprotein B ratio in LDL was associated with the presence of CAD in middle-aged women w ith mild to moderate hypercholesterolemia.