HDL biology
A review explains why CETP-expressing hamsters, not mice, are the preferred preclinical model for testing reverse-cholesterol-transport drugs (Curr Opin Investig Drugs 2010)
Original title: The use of dyslipidemic hamsters to evaluate drug-induced alterations in reverse cholesterol transport
Reverse cholesterol transport (RCT), the process by which HDL effluxes cholesterol from peripheral tissues back to the liver for excretion, is an attractive cardiovascular therapeutic target because promoting cholesterol efflux from vessel wall macrophages is thought to protect against atherosclerosis. Although most RCT studies use mice, this species does not express cholesteryl ester transfer protein (CETP), which transfers cholesteryl ester from HDL to VLDL/LDL for hepatic uptake and represents the major RCT route in humans. Because hamsters express CETP, they represent a convenient preclinical model for investigating novel dyslipidemia therapies that better reflects this key human pathway than mouse models lacking CETP.
Original abstract
Reverse cholesterol transport (RCT) is the process by which cholesterol is effluxed from peripheral tissues by HDL and returned to the liver for excretion into bile and, ultimately, into feces. Promoting cholesterol efflux from vessel wall macrophages is thought to protect against atherosclerosis and, therefore, RCT represents an attractive therapeutic target for cardiovascular diseases. Although most studies of RCT are conducted in mice, this species does not express cholesteryl ester transfer protein (CETP), which transfers cholesteryl ester from HDL to VLDL/LDL for further uptake by the liver. Given this pathway is the major route of RCT in humans, a CETP-expressing species, such as hamsters, represents a convenient preclinical model for investigating novel therapies for the treatment of dyslipidemia in humans.
Summary written by cetpinhibition.org from the published abstract; figures as published. Page updated 19 August 2026. Methods.