The role of HDL-cholesterol in preventing atherosclerotic disease

The cholesterol required by peripheral tissues, including vascular cells, is provided both by new synthesis in the cells and by a delivery from low-density lipoproteins (LDLs). When the level of LDLs is high, they accumulate in the artery wall where they are oxidized and taken up by foam cells in a process that leads to the development and progression of atherosclerosis. High-density lipoproteins (HDLs) oppose atherosclerosis directly, by removing cholesterol from foam cells, by inhibiting the oxidation of LDLs, and by limiting the inflammatory processes that underlie atherosclerosis. HDLs also have antithrombotic properties. Thus, HDL-cholesterol interrupts the process of atherogenesis at several key stages.