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Size matters: HDL particle populations and the risk of infection

Nature Reviews Cardiology volume 20, pages 279–280 (2023)Cite this article

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Low plasma levels of HDL cholesterol are a risk factor for infection and hospitalization for infectious disease. Recent work suggests that inadequate levels of HDL particles of specific sizes — small and medium — account for this risk. In this Comment, we discuss the mechanistic implications of these observations and the methodologies used to quantify HDL size.

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Fig. 1: HDL size and macrophage function.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA

    Jay W. Heinecke

  2. Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati, OH, USA

    W. Sean Davidson

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  1. Jay W. Heinecke
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  2. W. Sean Davidson
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Correspondence to Jay W. Heinecke.

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The authors declare no competing interests.

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Heinecke, J.W., Davidson, W.S. Size matters: HDL particle populations and the risk of infection. Nat Rev Cardiol 20, 279–280 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41569-023-00844-8

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