Potential and Caveats of Lipidomics for Cardiovascular Disease

ince the seminal publications from the Framingham study in the mid-60s, 1 the measurement of lipid levels, mainly of total cholesterol, total triglycerides, and low-density lipoprotein and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, is routine clinical practice for cardiovascular disease (CVD) and lipid-lowering therapy. A more detailed assessment of the lipid composition, that is, the molecular species that constitute the lipid classes, is not widely used, mainly because of the caveats of assessing the lipidome. The human lipidome is estimated to include thousands of molecular lipid species with functional diversity. The molecular lipid species within a lipid class share a modular composition with fatty acids being attached to a common backbone. Although a characteristic head group within the backbone defines the lipid class, the diversity of molecular lipid species derives from the conjugated fatty acids.