In vivo effects of CETP inhibitory peptides in hypercholesterolemic rabbit and cholesteryl ester transfer protein-transgenic mice.

We previously reported that cholesteryl ester transfer protein (CETP) inhibitory peptides (designated P28 and P10) have anti-atherogenic effects in hypercholesterolemic rabbits (Biochim. Biophys. Acta (1998) 1391, 133-144). To further investigate those effects, we studied rabbit plasma that was collected after 30 h of a P28 or P10 injection. We found that there is a strong correlation between the in vivo CETP inhibition effects and alterations of lipoprotein particle size distribution in rabbit plasma, as determined on an agarose gel electrophoresis and gel filtration column chromatography. In vivo effects of the peptide were observed again in C57BL/6 mice that expressed simian CETP. The P28 or P10 peptide (7 microg/g of body weight) that was dissolved in saline was injected subcutaneously into the mice. The P28 injection caused the partial inhibition of plasma CETP activity up to 50%, decreasing the total plasma cholesterol concentration by 30%, and increasing the ratio of HDL/ total-cholesterol concentration by 150% in the CETPtransgenic (tg) mice. The CETP inhibition by the P28 or P10 made alterations that modulated the size re-distribution of the lipoproteins in the blood stream. Particle size of the very low (VLDL) and low density lipoproteins (LDL) from the peptide-injected group was highly decreased compared to the saline-injected group (determined on the gel filtration column chromatography). In contrast, The HDL particle size of the P28-injected group increased compared to the control group (saline-injected). The expression level of the CETP mRNA of the P28-injected CETP-tg mouse appeared lower than the saline-injected CETP-tg mouse. These results suggest that the injection of the CETP inhibitory peptide could affect the CETP expression level in the liver by influencing lipoprotein metabolism.