Figure 5. Lipid exchanges amongst plasma lipoprotein particles.

This figure illustrates the exchange of the core lipids, cholesterol ester (CE) and triglycerides (TG) mediated by CETP among VLDL, LDL, and HDL. If a CE molecule from LDL or HDL is exchanged (yellow arrow) for a TG molecule from VLDL (turquoise arrow), the LDL or HDL particle becomes enriched in TG, but depleted in CE, whereas the VLDL particle loses TG but gains CE. In the case of LDL, the TG is subsequently hydrolyzed, producing a smaller, CE‐depleted LDL particle. Illustrated also is the transfer of free cholesterol from a VLDL particle to HDL as it is being hydrolyzed, where it can subsequently be esterified to form CE. CE indicates cholesterol ester; CETP, cholesterol ester transfer protein; HDL, high‐density lipoprotein; LDL, low‐density lipoprotein; TG, triglycerides; and VLDL, very low‐density lipoprotein.