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Raising so-called 'good' cholesterol by blocking a key protein involved in its metabolism does not protect against heart disease or stroke, according to a large genetic study of 150,000 Chinese adults published in the journal JAMA Cardiology.

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There are two types of cholesterol in the blood: LDL-C, so-called 'bad' cholesterol, which is carried in low-density lipoproteins (LDL), and HDL-C, so-called 'good' cholesterol which is found in high-density lipoproteins (HDL).

Lowering LDL-C (e.g. by statins) has been demonstrated to reduce the risk of heart diseases and stroke, but the causal role of HDL-C is less clear even though observational studies have shown an inverse association between HDL-C and risk of cardiovascular diseases.

Read more (University of Oxford website)