United States: A newly discovered drug can cut the levels of triglycerides in the body by almost half by targeting a genetic driver of high-fat levels in the bloodstream.
More about the drug
The drug called olezarsen, which is injectible, lower the levels of triglyceride by 49 percent at the 50 milligrams (mg) dose and by 53 percent at the 80 mg dose, as compared to a placebo.
As per the declaration of a team of investigators in a report published on April 7 in The New England Journal of Medicine.
During the same time, however, the results were also delivered at the American College of Cardiology’s annual conference in Atlanta, as revealed by the US News.
The new drug also reduces clogs in the bloodstream
Moreover, the drug is also able to reduce the other contributors that clog the arteries to lower their levels in blood. Other such contributors are named as apolopoprotein B and “bad” cholesterol.
Olezarsen prevents the APOC3 gene known for diminishing the liver’s measurement potential to remove triglycerides from the patient’s bloodstream, the scientists said.
Dr. Brian Bergmark, a researcher at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, said, “These findings indicate that targeting APOC3 is a promising new pathway for lowering triglycerides and potentially reducing the risk of heart attack and stroke,” as US News reported.
Triglycerides are fatty substances in the bloodstream that cause a Risk of coronary heart disease, both on their own and along with “bad” LDL cholesterol, so-called Harvard Medical School determines.
More about the study
This particular study involved a medical group of scientists who invited 154 patients who were already on a cholesterol-lowering program.
This group of volunteers was split into three subgroups according to the treatment that was given to them, which was – placebos were applied to one of the groups and the rest were treated with a low or high dose of olezarsen injection, given every four weeks for a year.
Any of the olezarsen doses lowered triglyceride levels by the same amount.
Besides that, apolipoprotein B protein in the bloodstream, which transports harmful cholesterol to your blood, was also decreased by 18 percent, and the unhealthy kind of cholesterol was reduced by 23 to 25 percent.
Study investigators argue that research for larger and long-term studies should also prove what prevents the drug (olezarsen) from cardiac attacks and strokes.