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. 1990 Jan;136(1):169–179.

Characterization of Two Unique Cholesterol-Rich Lipid Particles Isolated from Human Atherosclerotic Lesions

Fei-Fei Chao, E Joan Blanchette-Mackie, Ya-Jun Chen, Benjamin F Dickens, Elliott Berlin, Lynn M Amende, Sonia I Skarlatos, Wilbert Gamble, James H Resau, Wolfgang T Mergner, Howard S Kruth
PMCID: PMC1877463  PMID: 2297045

Abstract

The authors' laboratory, using histochemicalmethods, previously identified two types of cholesterol-containing lipid particles in the extracellular spaces of human atherosclerotic lesions, one particle enriched in esterified cholesterol and the other particle enriched in unesterified cholesterol. The authors isolated and characterized these lipid particles. The esterified cholesterol-rich lipid particle was a small lipid droplet and differed from intracellular lipid dropletsfound in foam cells with respect to size and chemical composition. It had an esterified cholesterol core surrounded by aphospholipidunesterified cholesterol monolayer. Some aqueous spaces were seen within the particle core. Unesterified cholesterol-rich lipid particles were multilamellated, solid structures and vesicles comprised of single or multiple lamellas. The esterified cholesterol-rich particle had a density <1.01 g/ml, whereas the unesterified cholesterol-rich particle had a density between 1.03 and 1.05 g/ml. Both particles were similar in size fraction, whereas palmitate, stearate, oleate, and linoleate were predominant in the phospholipid fraction. The origins and the role of these two unusual lipid particles in vessel wall cholesterol metabolism remain to be determined.

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