Illuminating HDL — Is It Still a Viable Therapeutic Target?

Raising plasma levels of high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol has been a therapeutic goal ever since the strong inverse association between HDL levels and the risk of coronary heart disease was first observed.1 Nearly two decades ago, the discovery that persons in Japan had extremely high levels of HDL cholesterol because of a genetic deficiency involving the cholesteryl ester transfer protein (CETP) led to the concept that pharmacologic inhibition of CETP could raise HDL cholesterol levels. When this theory proved to be true in humans, it led to great anticipation that CETP inhibition would permit the ultimate test of the “HDL . . .