Lower Cholesterol May Fight Infections

Researchers at the University of Edinburgh have found a direct link between the workings of the immune system and cholesterol levels. In a study in mice, the researchers discovered that a key immune hormone stimulated upon infection can lower cholesterol levels and thereby deprive viral infections of the sustenance they need to grow.

Currently, statins are prescribed to lower bad, or LDL, cholesterol, which helps to prevent heart attacks and strokes, and antiviral drugs and antibiotics are used to fight viral and bacterial infections, respectively. In the future, the researchers hope to use these findings to develop statin-like drugs that could both lower cholesterol and have potent anti-infective effects.

According to lead researcher Peter Ghazal, whose study was published in the Public Library of Science (PLoS) Biology journal, such treatments would help overcome the problems of drug resistance, since they would aim to enhance the way the body responds to an infection, instead of focusing on attacking the bug itself.