Brian A Ference1, Jennifer G Robinson1, Robert D Brook1, Alberico L Catapano1, M John Chapman1, David R Neff1, Szilard Voros1, Robert P Giugliano1, George Davey Smith1, Sergio Fazio1, Marc S Sabatine1. 1. From the Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, Wayne State University School of Medicine, Detroit (B.A.F.), the Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor (R.D.B.), and Michigan State University, East Lansing (D.R.N.) - all in Michigan; the Departments of Epidemiology and Medicine, College of Public Health, University of Iowa, Iowa City (J.G.R.); the Department of Pharmacological and Biomolecular Sciences, University of Milan and MultiMedica Istituto di Ricovero e Cura a Carattere Scientifico, Milan (A.L.C.); INSERM, Pitié-Salpêtrière University Hospital, Paris (M.J.C.); the Global Genomics Group, Richmond, VA (S.V.); the Thrombolysis in Myocardial Infarction Study Group, Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston (R.P.G., M.S.S.); the Medical Research Council Integrative Epidemiology Unit, University of Bristol, Bristol, United Kingdom (G.D.S.); and the Center for Preventive Cardiology, Knight Cardiovascular Institute, Oregon Health and Science University, Portland (S.F.).
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Pharmacologic inhibitors of proprotein convertase subtilisin-kexin type 9 (PCSK9) are being evaluated in clinical trials for the treatment of cardiovascular disease. The effect of lowering low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol levels by inhibiting PCSK9 on the risk of cardiovascular events or diabetes is unknown. METHODS: We used genetic scores consisting of independently inherited variants in the genes encoding PCSK9 and 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-coenzyme A reductase (HMGCR; the target of statins) as instruments to randomly assign 112,772 participants from 14 studies, with 14,120 cardiovascular events and 10,635 cases of diabetes, to groups according to the number of LDL cholesterol-lowering alleles that they had inherited. We compared the effects of lower LDL cholesterol levels that were mediated by variants in PCSK9, HMGCR, or both on the risk of cardiovascular events and the risk of diabetes. RESULTS: Variants in PCSK9 and HMGCR were associated with nearly identical protective effects on the risk of cardiovascular events per decrease of 10 mg per deciliter (0.26 mmol per liter) in the LDL cholesterol level: odds ratio for cardiovascular events, 0.81 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.74 to 0.89) for PCSK9 and 0.81 (95% CI, 0.72 to 0.90) for HMGCR. Variants in these two genes were also associated with very similar effects on the risk of diabetes: odds ratio for each 10 mg per deciliter decrease in LDL cholesterol, 1.11 (95% CI, 1.04 to 1.19) for PCSK9 and 1.13 (95% CI, 1.06 to 1.20) for HMGCR. The increased risk of diabetes was limited to persons with impaired fasting glucose levels for both scores and was lower in magnitude than the protective effect against cardiovascular events. When present together, PCSK9 and HMGCR variants had additive effects on the risk of both cardiovascular events and diabetes. CONCLUSIONS: In this study, variants in PCSK9 had approximately the same effect as variants in HMGCR on the risk of cardiovascular events and diabetes per unit decrease in the LDL cholesterol level. The effects of these variants were independent and additive. (Funded by the Medical Research Council and the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.).
BACKGROUND: Pharmacologic inhibitors of proprotein convertase subtilisin-kexin type 9 (PCSK9) are being evaluated in clinical trials for the treatment of cardiovascular disease. The effect of lowering low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol levels by inhibiting PCSK9 on the risk of cardiovascular events or diabetes is unknown. METHODS: We used genetic scores consisting of independently inherited variants in the genes encoding PCSK9 and 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-coenzyme A reductase (HMGCR; the target of statins) as instruments to randomly assign 112,772 participants from 14 studies, with 14,120 cardiovascular events and 10,635 cases of diabetes, to groups according to the number of LDL cholesterol-lowering alleles that they had inherited. We compared the effects of lower LDL cholesterol levels that were mediated by variants in PCSK9, HMGCR, or both on the risk of cardiovascular events and the risk of diabetes. RESULTS: Variants in PCSK9 and HMGCR were associated with nearly identical protective effects on the risk of cardiovascular events per decrease of 10 mg per deciliter (0.26 mmol per liter) in the LDL cholesterol level: odds ratio for cardiovascular events, 0.81 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.74 to 0.89) for PCSK9 and 0.81 (95% CI, 0.72 to 0.90) for HMGCR. Variants in these two genes were also associated with very similar effects on the risk of diabetes: odds ratio for each 10 mg per deciliter decrease in LDL cholesterol, 1.11 (95% CI, 1.04 to 1.19) for PCSK9 and 1.13 (95% CI, 1.06 to 1.20) for HMGCR. The increased risk of diabetes was limited to persons with impaired fasting glucose levels for both scores and was lower in magnitude than the protective effect against cardiovascular events. When present together, PCSK9 and HMGCR variants had additive effects on the risk of both cardiovascular events and diabetes. CONCLUSIONS: In this study, variants in PCSK9 had approximately the same effect as variants in HMGCR on the risk of cardiovascular events and diabetes per unit decrease in the LDL cholesterol level. The effects of these variants were independent and additive. (Funded by the Medical Research Council and the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.).
Authors: Kausik K Ray; Robert M Stoekenbroek; David Kallend; Toshiyuki Nishikido; Lawrence A Leiter; Ulf Landmesser; R Scott Wright; Peter L J Wijngaard; John J P Kastelein Journal: JAMA Cardiol Date: 2019-11-01 Impact factor: 14.676
Authors: Rebecca N Jerome; Jill M Pulley; Dan M Roden; Jana K Shirey-Rice; Lisa A Bastarache; Gordon R Bernard; Leeland B Ekstrom; William J Lancaster; Joshua C Denny Journal: Drug Saf Date: 2018-03 Impact factor: 5.606
Authors: Ben M Brumpton; Lars G Fritsche; Jie Zheng; Jonas Bille Nielsen; Maria Mannila; Ida Surakka; Humaira Rasheed; Gunnhild Åberge Vie; Sarah E Graham; Maiken Elvestad Gabrielsen; Lars Erik Laugsand; Pål Aukrust; Lars Johan Vatten; Jan Kristian Damås; Thor Ueland; Imre Janszky; John-Anker Zwart; Ferdinand M Van't Hooft; Nabil Georges Seidah; Kristian Hveem; Cristen Willer; George Davey Smith; Bjørn Olav Åsvold Journal: Circ Genom Precis Med Date: 2019-01