A powerful new drug able to cut cholesterol levels was unveiled today.
Research on volunteers has found the drug can cut levels of unhealthy cholesterol by up to 57%, according to a study published in The Lancet.
Developers say the drug may help people for whom the commonly used statin drugs are unsuitable or not effective enough.
Some 32 volunteers took part in the early trial of the drug ALN-PCS, a new kind of drug known as RNA interference therapeutics.
The drug blocks a protein called PCSK9, which prevents the clearing from the blood of low density lipoprotein, an unhealthy form of cholesterol.
It has been developed by a company in Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA.
British experts said the drug might be helpful for people who suffer from very high cholesterol levels.
The medical director of the British Heart Foundation, Professor Peter Weissberg, said: “People with extremely high cholesterol are at increased risk of a heart attack and this approach could offer new hope for those who are resistant to statins.
"These initial results add to growing evidence that blocking the action of a certain protein can dramatically lower ‘bad’ LDL cholesterol. More research is now needed to confirm this approach is both safe and effective at preventing heart attacks in the long term before it becomes widely available.”
Kevin Fitzgerald et al. Effect of an RNA interference drug on the synthesis of proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type 9 (PCSK9) and the concentration of serum LDL cholesterol in healthy volunteers: a randomised, single-blind, placebo-controlled, phase 1 trial. Lancet 3 October 2013 [abstract]
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