Researchers are focusing on PCSK9 antibodies, and experimental drug that might just have the key in the treatment of cholesterol.
The study used 24 randomized control trials to determine in which state the experimental drug is most effective and safe for adults with high cholesterol levels. Basically, the antibodies work by targeting the PCSK9, which is the main cholesterol-regulating protein of the human body. According to an article published in the "Annals of Internal Medicine", when targeted in the right amount, the bad cholesterol can be lowered by as much as 60 percent because of the antibodies. Further effects of the antibodies are reduced heart attacks and mortality rate.
Centers for Disease Control and prevention (CDC) reports that high cholesterol is greatly acquired because of unhealthy diet, physical inactivity, and obesity. Statistics show that 31.7 percent of adults in the US have high cholesterol and only less than half of them are getting treatments to lower their cholesterol levels. When cholesterol is not treated, it doubles the risk of acquiring heart diseases.
Up until the discovery of the PCSK9 antibodies as a drug for this disease, statin, a class of drug that inhibits an enzyme from producing cholesterol, is the commonly used treatment. It has been a very effective drug but it also has a lot of side effects that become the reason for others to back out of the treatment. Some side effects of statin intake are insomnia, diarrhea, headaches and nausea or vomiting.
The PCSK9 antibodies is still in its early stages of experiment and research. It is still too early to speculate anything. Scientists are only rooting that the experiment succeeds so that high cholesterol can finally be treated in the future.
