This study included 189 patients with elevated cholesterol levels of 116 mg/dL or higher and were on a stable dose of simvastatin (Zocor) or atorvastatin (Lipitor). Investigators randomized them to placebo or eprotirome at a dose of 25, 50, or 100 μg daily for 12 weeks. The results showed between a 7 and 32% decline in cholesterol levels and did not cause the feared side effects on the heart and other organs reported earlier with similar thyroid-based treatments.
The other benefits of the trial include the lowering of levels of other detrimental lipids along with LDL cholesterol. “There was no doubt that eprotirome would lower LDL cholesterol. Thyroid hormone is nature’s own statin. The first importance of the trial is that it shows hepatic [liver] targeting of hormonal action,” said Dr. Paul W. Ladenson, a professor of endocrinology and metabolism at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and lead author of a report on the trial. “The second exciting part is its impact on lipids other than LDL cholesterol.”
Although statins have been the most widely prescribed class of drugs to treat cardiovascular disease, they have been associated with troubling side effects and sometimes, not found effective enough. Thyroid hormones have interested pharma developers for long due to their ability to modulate lipid metabolism primarily through increasing liver uptake of cholesterol. Eprotirome mimics the function of thyroid hormones and reduce bloods cholesterol levels by acting specifically on the liver, which is the main cholesterol-producing site in the body.
Professor Bo Angelin, who headed the Karolinska study, noted that eprotirome “could help patients who react adversely to statins or be used as a supplementary treatment for those who don’t respond well to them.” He further adds: “An alternative to statins for treatment of high cholesterol would be welcome and could be on the horizon. Now comes the task of further studies to determine eprotirome’s safety and effectiveness in a larger group of patients over a prolonged period of time.”
Written by Snigdha for Biomed-ME