Raul D. Santos MD, PhDHeart Institute-InCor

University of Sao Paulo Brazil

Agents to reduce LDL (and future developments)

Disclosure

• Honoraria for consulting, speaker and research activities on the last year from– Amgen, Astra Zeneca, Akcea– Biolab, Merck, Novo-Nordisk– Pfizer, Kowa, Esperion – Sanofi/Regeneron

2

• Current options– Statins– Ezetimibe– PCSK9 inhibitors – Niacin/Resins– Lomitapide– Mipomersen

• Future options? – ATP CL Inhibition– PCSK9 sRNA interference

Agents to reduce LDL-C

3

Statins

Statins: Mechanism of Action

Statins inhibit HMG-CoA reductaseIntrahepatic cholesteorl pool reduction

Reduction of VLDL production

Less VLDL particles available to become LDLIncrementof LDL catabolsim

Increment on LDL receptor expression

Reduction of : LDL-C, TC, non-HDL-C and TG

HMG-CoA reductase

*P<0.002 vs ATV 10 mg; PRA 10 mg, 20 mg, 40 mg; SIN 10 mg, 20 mg, 40 mg.**P<0.002 vs ATV 20 mg, 40 mg; PRA 20 mg, 40 mg; SIN20 mg, 40 mg, 80 mg.análise de 10-40 mg .

Jones PH et al. AJC. 2003;93:152-160.

RSV ATV SIN PRA

10 20 40 10 20 4010 10 20 40

*-51

-55

-46

*****

20 40 80 80

-46

-37

-43-48

-28

-35

-20-24

-30

-39

-60

-50

-40

-30

-20

-10

0

-52

STELLAR LDL-C(% Changes vs. Baseline)

%

Pravastatin Increases the RemovalFrom Plasma of Chylomicron Remnants

in CHD patients

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

FCR CMr

PRAVA

PLACEBOD %

Santos RD et al. Am J Cardiol 2000; 85:1163-6

P = 0.01

Non-Lipid Lowering Effects of Statins

Jain MK, Ridker PM. Nature Rev Drug Discov, 2005

Statins: Benefits and Risks

9

Review

www.thelancet.com Published online September 8, 2016 http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(16)31357-5 11

were adverse eff ects on non-vascular causes of death and site-specifi c cancers.79 Consequently, data were sought for each of the eligible trials about the baseline characteristics of each patient and about myocardial infarctions, strokes, coronary revascularisations, cancers, and causes of death that occurred during the scheduled treatment period (but not any other adverse events, which is the subject of an ongoing project187). Follow-up of outcomes in the trials was reported to be about 99% complete. It was pre-specifi ed that results of the meta-analyses would be presented as risk reductions per mmol/L reduction in LDL cholesterol.29,79

In total in the CTT meta-analyses, there were about 25 000 major vascular events (defi ned as the composite of coronary deaths or non-fatal myocardial infarctions, strokes of any type, and coronary revascularisation procedures) during an average of about 5 years of scheduled study treatment. The proportional reductions in these major vascular event rates were related to the absolute reductions in LDL cholesterol that were achieved (fi gure 3). Overall, in the trials of routine statin therapy versus no routine use, there was a 20% proportional reduction in the major vascular event rate per mmol/L LDL cholesterol reduction (fi gure 4). The proportional risk reduction was smaller during the fi rst year after starting treatment, whereas it was 24% (ie, a risk ratio of 0·76) on average during each subsequent year that allocation to statin therapy was continued (p<0·0001 for diff erence between eff ects in fi rst vs later years). In the

Panel 3: Proven benefi cial eff ects of statin therapy

• Eff ective low-cost statin regimens (eg, generic atorvastatin 40 mg daily costs about £2 per month) reduce LDL cholesterol by more than 50% (ie, at least 2 mmol/L in individuals presenting with LDL cholesterol concentrations of ≥4 mmol/L).

• Large-scale evidence from randomised trials shows that each 1 mmol/L reduction in LDL cholesterol with statin therapy produces a proportional reduction of about 25% in the rate of major vascular events (coronary deaths, myocardial infarctions, strokes, and coronary revascularisations) during each year (after the fi rst) that it continues to be taken. Consequently, lowering LDL cholesterol by 2 mmol/L reduces risk by about 45%.

• Lowering LDL cholesterol by 2 mmol/L with an eff ective statin regimen for about 5 years in 10 000 patients would typically prevent major vascular events in about 1000 (10%) patients at high risk of heart attacks and strokes (eg, secondary prevention) and 500 (5%) patients at lower risk (eg, primary prevention).

• Despite reports based largely on non-randomised observational studies, there is not good evidence that statin therapy produces benefi cial eff ects on other health outcomes (eg, cancer, infections, respiratory disease, arrhythmias) .

Figure 3: Proportional major vascular event reductions versus absolute LDL cholesterol reductions in randomised trials of routine statin therapy versus no routine statin use and of more intensive versus less intensive regimensAdapted from CTT Collaboration website. Proportional risk reductions are plotted against the average LDL cholesterol reduction at 1 year in meta-analyses of trials of routine statin therapy versus no routine statin therapy with average LDL cholesterol reduction greater than and less than 1·1 mmol/L, and of trials of more versus less intensive statin therapy with a further 0·5 mmol/L reduction in LDL cholesterol. The vertical axis labels of 10%, 20%, and 30% are not equally spaced because they represent reductions on the log scale (ie, the labels are plotted at –log[0·9], –log[0·8], and –log[0·7], respectively). These risk reductions relate to the average eff ects on risk observed in these trials including the fi rst year of study treatment (when the risk reduction is smaller) and to the LDL cholesterol reductions achieved at 1 year (rather than the average diff erence for the scheduled study treatment period), which may underestimate the eff ects of actually taking statin therapy long term (fi gure 4).

Mean 1-year LDL cholesterol differencebetween treatment groups (mmol/L)

Prop

ortio

nal r

educ

tion

in m

ajor

vasc

ular

even

t rat

e (95

% C

I)

0

10

20

30

0 0·5 1·0 1·5

5 trials with furtherLDL cholesterol reduction(average: 0·5 mmol/L)

17 trials with LDL cholesterol reduction at 1 year <1·1 mmol/L(average: 0·9 mmol/L)

5 trials with LDL cholesterol reduction at 1 year >1·1 mmol/L(average: 1·4 mmol/L)

Figure 4: Proportional reductions in risks of major vascular events per mmol/L reduction in LDL cholesterol during each year of scheduled statin treatment, in randomised trials of routine statin therapy versus no routine statin useAdapted from CTT Collaboration website. For each time period, RRs weighted by trial-specifi c LDL cholesterol reductions at 1 year relate to participants at risk of a fi rst post-randomisation major vascular event during the time period in the meta-analysis of trials of routine statin therapy versus no routine statin therapy. Consequently, the overall RR of 0·76 for the period after the fi rst year indicates that risk is reduced by about one-quarter in each year that treatment continues (ie, the absolute benefi ts increase with increasing duration of treatment). As non-compliance to the randomly assigned treatment increased with longer duration in the trials (because of study statin therapy being stopped or because of statin therapy being started in the control group), the per mmol/L reductions based on LDL cholesterol reductions at 1 year are likely to underestimate the reductions in MVE risk per mmol/L LDL cholesterol reduction later in these trials. p<0·0001 for test of heterogeneity between RR in fi rst year and RR in 1–≥5 years. RR=rate ratio. MVE=major vascular event.

RR (CI) per 1 mmol/Lreduction in LDL cholesterol

Annual event ratein control arm(% per year)

Totalnumberof MVEs

0–1 year1–2 years2–3 years3–4 years4–5 years≥5 yearsAll yearsYears 1–≥5

3·83·43·63·63·73·93·63·6

468035803124248318191018

16 70412 024

0·91 (0·85–0·97) 0·78 (0·73–0·85) 0·76 (0·70–0·82) 0·72 (0·66–0·79) 0·78 (0·71–0·87) 0·76 (0·65–0·87) 0·80 (0·78–0·82) 0·76 (0·74–0·79)

10·599% CI 95% CI 1·250·75

LDL cholesterollowering worse

LDL cholesterol lowering better

Review

www.thelancet.com Published online September 8, 2016 http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(16)31357-5 15

Cerivastatin was withdrawn from use because the myopathy rate observed in post-marketing surveillance with approved doses was much higher than with other statins.221 In the SEARCH randomised trial,83 simvastatin 80 mg daily produced a more than ten-fold higher rate (at least 1 case of myopathy per 1000 patients treated yearly) than 20 mg daily (or 40 mg daily in HPS;222 about one case per 10 000 yearly), so the high-dose regimen is no longer recommended routinely.223 The rates of reports of myopathy in regulatory databases are also higher with higher doses of atorvastatin, although such spontaneous reports may be biased and the absolute risks are still small even with the highest approved dose.217 The rate of myopathy can be increased substantially when statins are used in combination with other drugs that aff ect their metabolism (in particular, inhibitors of cytochrome P450 or the P-glycoprotein, such as ciclosporin and azole antifungals) and in certain types of patient (eg, people of Asian origin and those who have functional variation in the SLCO1B1 gene).145,178,218,224 More moderate increases (eg, risk ratios of about 1·5 to 2) in the rate of myopathy are also seen in other circumstances (eg, in combination with certain antihypertensive drugs and in women, people aged older than 80 years, and those with diabetes).219

Despite this causal association with myopathy, the evidence from randomised controlled trials indicates that statin therapy has little eff ect on less severe muscle pain (ie, myalgia) or weakness, although such symptoms are commonly attributed to statins in routine practice. Indeed, an excess of muscle-related symptoms has generally only been reported in trials when it occurs in combination with increased creatine kinase con-centrations, with bigger relative risks reported with larger creatine kinase increases. For example, in the Heart Protection Study of simvastatin 40 mg daily versus placebo, the relative risk for any myalgia irrespective of increased creatine kinase concentrations was 0·99 (95% CI 0·95–1·03), whereas it was 1·7 (0·9–3·1) for myalgia in patients with a creatine kinase concentration more than four times the upper limit of normal, and 2·5 (0·8–8·0) for those with an increase of more than ten times the upper limit of normal.38,222 This result provides another illustration of the value of using specifi c outcomes to detect treatment eff ects, rather than composites of outcomes that are aff ected by treatment and those that are not.

Increases in rates of diabetesIn the JUPITER randomised trial among 17 802 patients without a history of vascular disease, concentrations of glycated haemoglobin were slightly higher after about 2 years among the patients allocated rosuvastatin 20 mg daily than among those allocated placebo (5·9% vs 5·8%; p=0·001).48,225 There was also a small excess of newly diagnosed diabetes (3·0% vs 2·4%; p=0·01), which corresponds to a 25% (95% CI 5–49) proportional

increase. In subsequent meta-analyses of the available results from the randomised trials, standard statin dose regimens were associated with a proportional increase of about 10% in reported diabetes, and more intensive statin regimens (as used in JUPITER) with about a 10% further increase.49,226 This excess of diabetes diagnoses appeared soon after the start of statin therapy, chiefl y among patients who had risk factors for diabetes (eg, elevated body-mass index or HbA1c, or impaired fasting glucose), and did not appear to get larger as treatment continued.225,227,228 Prior to these reports from randomised trials, statin therapy had not been associated with increased diabetes incidence in observational studies, although several reports of such associations have been published subsequently.229,230

Genetic variants that reduce the activity of HMG-CoA reductase (which is analogous to inhibiting this enzyme with a statin) have been associated with an increased incidence of diabetes.231 Likewise, individuals with familial hypercholesterolaemia—in whom the numbers

Panel 4: Known adverse eff ects of statin therapy

• The only adverse events that have been reliably shown to be caused by statin therapy are myopathy (defi ned as muscle pain or weakness combined with large increases in creatine kinase blood concentrations) and new-onset diabetes mellitus, along with a probable increase in strokes due to bleeding (ie, haemorrhagic strokes).

• Typically, treatment of 10 000 patients for 5 years with a standard statin regimen (such as atorvastatin 40 mg daily) would be expected to cause about 5 cases of myopathy, 50–100 new cases of diabetes, and 5–10 haemorrhagic strokes.

• Despite reports based largely on non-randomised observational studies, there is good evidence that statin therapy does not cause adverse eff ects on other health outcomes (chiefl y muscle pain and weakness) that have been claimed prevent a large proportion of patients from continuing it long term (so-called “statin intolerance”).

• Large-scale evidence from randomised trials rules out excesses of muscle pain and weakness with statin therapy of more than about 10–20 cases annually per 10 000 treated patients, with only about one of those cases being associated with large creatine kinase elevations (ie, myopathy) and requiring statin discontinuation.

• Absolute excesses of adverse events that are caused by statin therapy are not more than about 100–200 per 10 000 patients (ie, 1–2%) treated for 5 years, and it is unlikely that large adverse eff ects on serious adverse events await discovery.

• The harmful eff ects of statin therapy can usually be reversed without any residual eff ects by stopping it, whereas the harmful eff ects of heart attacks or strokes that occur because statin therapy has not been used can be devastating .

Collins R et al. Lancet 2016; 388:2532-2561

Ezetimibe

NPC1L1 Transports Intestinal Cholesterol and Phytosterols: Inhibition of NPC1L1 by Ezetimibe for

Hypercholesterolemia and Sitosterolemia

Sitosterolemia

Cholesterol and Plant Sterols

NPC1L1

Farnier M et al. Atherosclerosis 2013; 229:415 - 422

Effects of ezetimibe, simvastatin and simvastatin/ezetimibe on pro-atherogenic lipids and apoB

12

Ezetimibe + Statin Trials: SHARP and IMPROVE-IT

13

Rela

tive

risk

redu

ctio

nof

isch

emic

eve

nts (

95%

HF)

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

0 20 4010 30

Statins vs. control (21 studies)Intensive

hypolipidemia treatment

vs. Conventional(5 studies)

SHARP17% risk

reductionSHARP32mg/dL

Baigent et al. Lancet 2011; 377;2181–2192.Cannon CP et al. N Engl J Med 2015;372:2387-2397.

SHARPIMPROVE-IT

Ezetimibe: Side Effects

• Gastro intestinal

14

Antibodies against PCSK9

PCSK9 Promotes LDLR Degradation

Mullard. Nature Reviews Drug Discovery 2012; 11:817-819

Effects of Alirocumab on Lipoprotein Kinetics in Healthy Subjects

Gissette Reyes-Soffer et al. Circulation. 2017;135:352-362

Monoclonal Antibodies: Immunogenicity Potential

18

18 The Journal of Clinical Pharmacology / Vol 57 No 1 2017

Figure 4. Evolution of therapeutic monoclonal antibodies. Fully mouse antibodies developed with early hybridoma technology were highlyimmunogenic. Development of recombinant DNA technologies resulted in more humanized and less immunogenic antibodies: chimeric, humanized,and fully human.45,46,48

convenience to patients, who do not need to receive theinfusion at special infusion centers, and lower risk forinfusion reactions.45

Treatment with mAbs offers several advantagesover other pharmacologic interventions (ie, small drugmolecules), including a reduced risk for drug-druginteractions because mAbs are not metabolized by theliver and kidneys and do not interact with cytochromeP450 and other transport proteins.45,47 Monoclonalantibodies have high specificity for target antigens, canachieve high potency with less frequent dosing, and donot penetrate the central nervous system because oftheir size.45 Furthermore, mAbs are unlikely to blockpotassium channels, prolong the QT interval, and causecardiac repolarization changes.45,50

Overview of PCSK9-Specific Monoclonal AntibodyClinical TrialsIdentification of PCSK9 as a potential therapeutictarget for the treatment of hypercholesterolemia hasgenerated an extensive body of research to developinterventions to inhibit or reduce levels of PCSK9.Of particular interest are ongoing clinical researchprograms to evaluate the efficacy and safety of PCSK9-specific mAbs, including alirocumab, evolocumab, andbococizumab (Figures 5–7, Tables 2 and 3).51–77

Alirocumab at varying doses (range 50 to300 mg) combined with a statin, with or withoutezetimibe, for the treatment of patients with primary

hypercholesterolemia58,65 or HeFH67,68 was evaluatedin phase 2 clinical trials (Figure 5, Table 2). TheODYSSEY program was established to furtherevaluate the efficacy, safety, and tolerability ofalirocumab for the treatment of individuals withhypercholesterolemia, those at high risk for CV events,those with statin intolerance, those with HeFH, andthose with diabetes. Since the inception of the program,17 phase 3 trials enrolling more than 24,000 patientshave been completed or are under way (Figure 5,Table 2). Results from these trials to date revealfavorable efficacy and safety of alirocumab comparedwith standard therapies or placebo.52,54,59,64,66,73,74,76,77

A phase 4 trial, ODYSSEY DM-Dyslipidemia, willevaluate the efficacy of alirocumab in the reductionof non-HDL-C in patients with type 2 diabetes andmixed dyslipidemia.78 The FDA-approved dose ofalirocumab is 75 to 150 mg SC every 2 weeks (Q2W).43

The Program to Reduce LDL-C and CV OutcomesFollowing Inhibition of PCSK9 in Different Popula-tions (PROFICIO) is amultistudy clinical trial programevaluating the efficacy and safety of evolocumab (Fig-ure 6). The research program includes 22 studies, 16of which are phase 3 trials, and a projected enrollmentof approximately 30,000 patients. Results from phase2 and phase 3 studies demonstrate significant reduc-tions in LDL-C levels and a positive impact on sec-ondary lipid parameters [eg, non-HDL-C, apo B, andLp(a)] with a favorable safety profile.55–57,61–63,71,75 The

Adapted from Ito MK & Santos RD J Clin Pharmacol. 2017;57:7-32

Bococizumab

EvolocumabAlirocumab

Percent Reduction from Baseline in Low-Density Lipoprotein (LDL) Cholesterol Levels in the Evolocumab Group, as Compared with the Placebo Group, at

Weeks 12 and 52, According to Background Lipid-Lowering Therapy.

Blom DJ et al. N Engl J Med 2014;370:1809-1819.

N=901

Alirocumab Reduces LDL-C in Familial Hypercholesterolemia

John J.P. Kastelein et al. Eur Heart J. 2015;36:2996-3003

21

www.thelancet.com/diabetes-endocrinology Published online February 15, 2017 http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S2213-8587(17)30044-X 1

Articles

Lancet Diabetes Endocrinol 2017

Published OnlineFebruary 15, 2017http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S2213-8587(17)30044-X

See Online/Commenthttp://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S2213-8587(17)30060-8

Carbohydrate and Lipid Metabolism Research Unit, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa (Prof F J Raal MD); Department of Vascular Medicine, Academisch Medisch Centrum, Amsterdam, Netherlands (G K Hovingh PhD); Division of Lipidology, Department of Medicine, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa (D Blom MD); Lipid Clinic Heart Institute (InCor), University of Sao Paulo Medical School Hospital and Preventive Medicine Center and Cardiology Program, Hospital Israelita Albert Einstein, Sao Paulo, Brazil (Prof R D Santos MD); Department of Molecular Innovation in Lipidology, National Cerebral and Cardiovascular Center Research Institute, Osaka, Japan (Prof M Harada-Shiba MD); Hôspital Pitié Salpêtrière, Assistance-Publique Hôpitaux de Paris, Paris, France (Prof E Bruckert MD); Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Québec, Quebec City, QC, Canada (P Couture MD); Cardiovascular Trials Unit, Central Manchester University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Manchester, UK (Prof H Soran MD); Lipid Disorders Clinic, Department of Cardiology, Royal Perth Hospital, School of Medicine and Pharmacology, University of Western Australia, Perth, WA, Australia (Prof G F Watts MD);

Long-term treatment with evolocumab added to conventional drug therapy, with or without apheresis, in patients with homozygous familial hypercholesterolaemia: an interim subset analysis of the open-label TAUSSIG studyFrederick J Raal, G Kees Hovingh, Dirk Blom, Raul D Santos, Mariko Harada-Shiba, Eric Bruckert, Patrick Couture, Handrean Soran, Gerald F Watts, Christopher Kurtz, Narimon Honarpour, Lihua Tang, Sree Kasichayanula, Scott M Wasserman, Evan A Stein

SummaryBackground Homozygous familial hypercholesterolaemia is a genetic disorder characterised by substantially raised LDL cholesterol, reduced LDL receptor function, xanthomas, and cardiovascular disease before age 20 years. Conventional therapy is with statins, ezetimibe, and apheresis. We aimed to assess the long-term safety and effi cacy of the proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type 9 (PCSK9) inhibitor evolocumab in a subset of patients with homozygous familial hypercholesterolaemia enrolled in an open-label, non-randomised phase 3 trial.

Methods In this interim subset analysis of the TAUSSIG study, which was undertaken at 35 sites in 17 countries, we included patients aged 12 years or older with homozygous familial hypercholesterolaemia who were on stable LDL cholesterol-lowering therapy for at least 4 weeks; all patients received evolocumab 420 mg subcutaneously monthly, or if on apheresis every 2 weeks. Dosing could be increased to every 2 weeks after 12 weeks in patients not on apheresis. The primary outcome of the TAUSSIG study was treatment-emergent adverse events; secondary outcomes were the eff ects of evolocumab on LDL cholesterol and other lipids. We analysed patients on an intention-to-treat basis, and all statistical comparisons were done post hoc in this interim analysis. The TAUSSIG study is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT01624142, and is ongoing.

Findings 106 patients were included in this analysis, 34 receiving apheresis at study entry and 14 younger than 18 years. The fi rst patient was enrolled on June 28, 2012, and the cutoff date for the analysis was Aug 13, 2015; mean follow-up was 1·7 years (SD 0·63). After 12 weeks, mean LDL cholesterol decreased from baseline by 20·6% (SD 24·4; mean absolute decrease 1·50 mmol/L [SD 1·92]); these reductions were maintained at week 48. 47 of 72 patients not on apheresis at study entry increased evolocumab dosing to every 2 weeks, with an additional mean reduction in LDL cholesterol of 8·3% (SD 13·0; mean absolute decrease 0·77 mmol/L [SD 1·38]; p=0·0001). In a post-hoc analysis, mean reductions in LDL cholesterol in patients on apheresis were signifi cant at week 12 (p=0·0012) and week 48 (p=0·0032), and did not diff er from reductions achieved in patients not on apheresis (p=0·38 at week 12 and p=0·09 at week 48). We noted a small reduction (median –7·7% [IQR –21·6 to 6·8]) in lipoprotein(a) at week 12 (p=0·0015), with some additional reduction at week 48 (–11·9% [–28·0 to 0·0]; p<0·0001). HDL cholesterol was increased by a mean of 7·6% (SD 18·1) at week 12 (p<0·0001) and 7·6% (SD 20·6) at week 48 (p=0·0007). Evolocumab was well tolerated; 82 (77%) patients reported treatment-emergent adverse events, which were mostly minor. The most common were nasopharyngitis (14 patients [13%]), infl uenza (13 [12%]), headache (11 [10%]), and upper respiratory tract infection (11 [10%]). Serious adverse events occurred in 18 (17%) patients, with the most common being cardiovascular events (four patients [4%]). There were no deaths and four positively adjudicated cardiovascular events, one (3%) among patients on apheresis and three (4%) among patients who did not receive apheresis.

Interpretation Our interim results suggest that evolocumab is an eff ective additional option to reduce LDL cholesterol in patients with homozygous familial hypercholesterolaemia, with or without apheresis.

Funding Amgen.

IntroductionHomozygous familial hypercholesterolaemia is a severe genetic disorder caused by mutations in both alleles of the genes encoding the LDL receptor or (less frequently) apolipoprotein B, proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type 9 (PCSK9), or the LDL receptor adaptor protein.1,2 As a result of substantially reduced clearance, plasma LDL

cholesterol is severely raised from birth, resulting in skin and tendon xanthomas and predisposition to premature (often fatal) cardiovascular disease in childhood or early adulthood.3 Untreated patients typically have LDL cholesterol concentrations greater than 13 mmol/L, requiring reductions of nearly 90% to achieve a goal of less than 1·8 mmol/L (as recommended for patients with

Articles

6 www.thelancet.com/diabetes-endocrinology Published online February 15, 2017 http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S2213-8587(17)30044-X

18 (17%) had reductions of more than 40–60%, and ten (10%) had reductions of more than 60% (appendix). Adolescent patients (n=14) showed a mean reduction in LDL cholesterol of 10·6% (SD 25·9) at week 12 and 23·0% (25·5) at week 48, a difference largely caused by

the four patients undergoing apheresis who at week 12 had a mean increase in LDL cholesterol of 14·7% (SD 22·1) compared with a mean 20·7% reduction (20·2) in the ten patients who did not receive apheresis. At week 48 in adolescents, mean reductions were 1·6% (SD 13·1) in the two patients assessed in the apheresis group and 28·4% (25·5) in the eight patients assessed in the no apheresis group (appendix). Seven adolescents not on apheresis who increased dosing to every 2 weeks had a mean 9·5% (SD 19·4) additional reduction in LDL cholesterol (mean absolute reduction 0·74 mmol/L [SD 1·66]).

In the 34 patients on apheresis, who received evolocumab every 2 weeks, the mean reduction in LDL cholesterol at week 12 was 17·3% (SD 28·4) compared with 22·2% (22·3) in the 72 patients who did not receive apheresis and who were treated monthly; at week 48, the reductions were 15·8% (25·8) for the apheresis group and 26·7% (32·4) for the non-apheresis group (including 47 patients who uptitrated to dosing every 2 weeks; table 2). The patients in the apheresis group had more severe mutations in LDLR (four [12%] had LDLR–/– mutations in the apheresis group vs four [6%] in the no apheresis group) and fewer had one or more defective LDLR mutations (12 [35%] vs 38 [53%]; table 1). These reductions in LDL cholesterol in patients on apheresis, both at week 12 and 48, were significant, and did not significantly differ from the reductions achieved in patients who were not on apheresis (post-hoc statistical testing; appendix). Four patients on apheresis reduced the frequency of the procedure from every 2 weeks to monthly or less often, and two patients permanently discontinued apheresis. One patient has remained off apheresis for more than 2 years. Conversely, two patients began apheresis: one who is receptor negative, and one with a heterozygous genotype whose LDL cholesterol remained above goal despite a more than 50% reduction with evolocumab treatment. These patients were still included in the no apheresis group data for analysis purposes.

Reductions in apolipoprotein B paralleled those of LDL cholesterol, with greater reductions at week 48 than at week 12. We noted a small reduction in lipoprotein(a) at week 12, with some additional reduction seen at week 48 (table 2; appendix). These reductions in lipoprotein(a) were not significant in patients receiving apheresis at either week 12 or 48 (post-hoc statistical testing; appendix). Very small reductions in lipoprotein(a) occurred in patients with LDL receptor mutations in both alleles, but median reductions of 52% (IQR –63 to –41) at week 12 and 67% (–69 to –63) at week 48 were seen in patients with PCSK9 gain-of-function mutations. Patients with APOB or LDLRAP1 mutations had median reductions of 20–30% (appendix).

Moderate and significant increases from baseline in mean HDL cholesterol of 5·0–8·9% were seen at both week 12 and 48, with no significant differences between

Figure 1: LDL cholesterol change between baseline and 48 weeksFigure shows data for 106 patients with homozygous familial hypercholesterolaemia treated with evolocumab, all together and by apheresis status at study entry. Data are mean and error bars show SD.

–70

–60

–50

–40

–30

–20

–10

0

10

20

30

Baseline 4 8 12 16 20 24 36 48

Mea

n ch

ange

in LD

L cho

lest

erol

(%)

Study week

All patients (n=106)No apheresis (n=72)Apheresis (n=34)

After ≥12 weeks of 420 mg evolocumab every month

After 12 weeks of 420 mg evolocumab every 2 weeks

Value at baseline, mmol/L 9·35 (3·35) 9·35 (3·35)

Change from baseline, mmol/L –1·77 (2·05) –2·57 (2·14)

Percentage change from baseline –20·1% (21·7) –28·3%(21·1)

Data are mean (SD). Data are for 47 patients who were not on apheresis who increased their dosing to every 2 weeks. p=0·0001 for difference between groups in change from baseline.

Table 3: Effect of evolocumab uptitration on LDL cholesterol

Figure 2: LDL cholesterol change from baseline to week 12, by underlying genetic abnormalityMean change in LDL cholesterol is shown in parentheses after each genetic abnormality category. GoF=gain of function. *Apheresis patient. †Patient missed apheresis before week 12 blood draw due to snowstorm. ‡Week 12 immediately after vacation; dietary indiscretion suspected. ARH=autosomal recessive hypercholesterolaemia.

–100

–80

–60

–40

–20

0

20

40

60

LDLR defective (–20%)LDLR unclassified (–25%)

LDLR–/– (5%)

PCSK9GoF/LDLRnegative(–65%)

Apolipoprotein B(–47%)

ARH(–15%)

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Raal et al. Lancet Diabetes Endocrinol. 2017 ;5:280-290

Evolocumab Reduces Lp(a) in Heterozygous FH

-35

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22Raal F et al. Circulation 2012;126:2408-2417

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Clinical Impact

0

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LDL

Chol

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mg/

dl)

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Evolocumab(median 30 mg/dl, IQR 19-46 mg/dl)

Placebo

59% mean reduction (95%CI 58-60), P<0.00001

Absolute reduction: 56 mg/dl (95%CI 55-57)

LDL Cholesterol

Sabatine et al. N Engl J Med. 2017;376(18):1713-1722

FOURIER: Study Endpoints

25

n engl j med nejm.org 7

Evolocumab in Patients with Cardiovascular Disease

mately 90% in each group) were classified as mild, and only 0.1% of the patients in each group stopped receiving the study agent because of an injection-site reaction. The rates of adjudicated cases of new-onset diabetes did not differ signifi-cantly between the two groups (hazard ratio, 1.05; 95% CI, 0.94 to 1.17). The rates of allergic reac-tions also did not differ significantly between the groups (3.1% vs. 2.9%). In the evolocumab group, new binding antibodies developed in 43 patients (0.3%), and development of neutralizing antibodies did not occur in any patient.

Discussion

When added to statin therapy, the PCSK9 inhibi-tor evolocumab lowered LDL cholesterol levels by 59% from baseline levels as compared with placebo, from a median of 92 mg per deciliter (2.4 mmol per liter) to 30 mg per deciliter (0.78 mmol per liter). This effect was sustained with-out evidence of attenuation. In this dedicated cardiovascular outcomes trial, we found that the addition of evolocumab to statin therapy signifi-cantly reduced the risk of cardiovascular events, with a 15% reduction in the risk of the primary composite end point of cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction, stroke, hospitalization for unstable angina, or coronary revascularization and a 20% reduction in the risk of the more clinically serious key secondary end point of cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction, or stroke. During a median of 26 months of follow-up, the only ad-verse events that were noted to be nominally sig-nificantly more common in association with evo-locumab were injection-site reactions, but these were rare, and the rate of discontinuation of the study regimen was no higher with evolocumab than with placebo.

The data from our trial provide insight into the benefit of decreasing LDL cholesterol levels to median levels lower than those in previous trials. Previously, significant reductions in major cardio-vascular events were found in the Pravastatin or Atorvastatin Evaluation and Infection Therapy–Thrombolysis in Myocardial Infarction 22 (PROVE IT–TIMI 22) and Treating to New Targets (TNT) trials, in which the more intensive statin regimen lowered LDL cholesterol levels from ap-proximately 100 mg per deciliter (2.6 mmol per liter) to 70 mg per deciliter (1.8 mmol per li-ter).13,14 More recently, the addition of ezetimibe to statin therapy in the Improved Reduction of

Figure 2. Cumulative Incidence of Cardiovascular Events.

Panel A shows the cumulative event rates for the primary efficacy end point (the composite of cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction, stroke, hos-pitalization for unstable angina, or coronary revascularization), and Panel B shows the rates for the key secondary efficacy end point (the composite of cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction, or stroke). I bars indicate 95% confidence intervals. The Kaplan–Meier rates for the primary end point in the evolocumab group versus the placebo group were as follows: at 1 year, 5.3% (95% confidence interval [CI], 4.9 to 5.7) versus 6.0% (95% CI, 5.6 to 6.4); at 2 years, 9.1% (95% CI, 8.6 to 9.6) versus 10.7% (95% CI, 10.1 to 11.2); and at 3 years, 12.6% (95% CI, 11.7 to 13.5) versus 14.6% (95% CI, 13.8 to 15.5). The Kaplan–Meier rates for the key secondary end point in the evolocumab group versus the placebo group were as follows: at 1 year, 3.1% (95% CI, 2.8 to 3.4) versus 3.7% (95% CI, 3.4 to 4.0); at 2 years, 5.5% (95% CI, 5.1 to 5.9) versus 6.8% (95% CI, 6.4 to 7.3); and at 3 years, 7.9% (95% CI, 7.2 to 8.7) versus 9.9% (95% CI, 9.2 to 10.7). P values were calculated with the use of log-rank tests. The insets show the same data on an enlarged y axis.

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A Primary Efficacy End Point

Hazard ratio, 0.85 (95% CI, 0.79–0.92)P<0.001

No. at RiskPlaceboEvolocumab

13,78013,784

13,27813,351

12,82512,939

11,87112,070

76107771

36903746

686689

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Evolocumab

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00 6 12 18 24 30 36

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Hazard ratio, 0.80 (95% CI, 0.73–0.88)P<0.001

No. at RiskPlaceboEvolocumab

13,78013,784

13,44913,501

13,14213,241

12,28812,456

79448094

38933935

731724

Placebo

Evolocumab3.7

6.8

9.9

3.1

5.5

7.9

6.0

10.7

14.6

5.3

9.1

12.6

The New England Journal of Medicine Downloaded from nejm.org on March 17, 2017. For personal use only. No other uses without permission.

Copyright © 2017 Massachusetts Medical Society. All rights reserved.

n engl j med nejm.org 7

Evolocumab in Patients with Cardiovascular Disease

mately 90% in each group) were classified as mild, and only 0.1% of the patients in each group stopped receiving the study agent because of an injection-site reaction. The rates of adjudicated cases of new-onset diabetes did not differ signifi-cantly between the two groups (hazard ratio, 1.05; 95% CI, 0.94 to 1.17). The rates of allergic reac-tions also did not differ significantly between the groups (3.1% vs. 2.9%). In the evolocumab group, new binding antibodies developed in 43 patients (0.3%), and development of neutralizing antibodies did not occur in any patient.

Discussion

When added to statin therapy, the PCSK9 inhibi-tor evolocumab lowered LDL cholesterol levels by 59% from baseline levels as compared with placebo, from a median of 92 mg per deciliter (2.4 mmol per liter) to 30 mg per deciliter (0.78 mmol per liter). This effect was sustained with-out evidence of attenuation. In this dedicated cardiovascular outcomes trial, we found that the addition of evolocumab to statin therapy signifi-cantly reduced the risk of cardiovascular events, with a 15% reduction in the risk of the primary composite end point of cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction, stroke, hospitalization for unstable angina, or coronary revascularization and a 20% reduction in the risk of the more clinically serious key secondary end point of cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction, or stroke. During a median of 26 months of follow-up, the only ad-verse events that were noted to be nominally sig-nificantly more common in association with evo-locumab were injection-site reactions, but these were rare, and the rate of discontinuation of the study regimen was no higher with evolocumab than with placebo.

The data from our trial provide insight into the benefit of decreasing LDL cholesterol levels to median levels lower than those in previous trials. Previously, significant reductions in major cardio-vascular events were found in the Pravastatin or Atorvastatin Evaluation and Infection Therapy–Thrombolysis in Myocardial Infarction 22 (PROVE IT–TIMI 22) and Treating to New Targets (TNT) trials, in which the more intensive statin regimen lowered LDL cholesterol levels from ap-proximately 100 mg per deciliter (2.6 mmol per liter) to 70 mg per deciliter (1.8 mmol per li-ter).13,14 More recently, the addition of ezetimibe to statin therapy in the Improved Reduction of

Figure 2. Cumulative Incidence of Cardiovascular Events.

Panel A shows the cumulative event rates for the primary efficacy end point (the composite of cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction, stroke, hos-pitalization for unstable angina, or coronary revascularization), and Panel B shows the rates for the key secondary efficacy end point (the composite of cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction, or stroke). I bars indicate 95% confidence intervals. The Kaplan–Meier rates for the primary end point in the evolocumab group versus the placebo group were as follows: at 1 year, 5.3% (95% confidence interval [CI], 4.9 to 5.7) versus 6.0% (95% CI, 5.6 to 6.4); at 2 years, 9.1% (95% CI, 8.6 to 9.6) versus 10.7% (95% CI, 10.1 to 11.2); and at 3 years, 12.6% (95% CI, 11.7 to 13.5) versus 14.6% (95% CI, 13.8 to 15.5). The Kaplan–Meier rates for the key secondary end point in the evolocumab group versus the placebo group were as follows: at 1 year, 3.1% (95% CI, 2.8 to 3.4) versus 3.7% (95% CI, 3.4 to 4.0); at 2 years, 5.5% (95% CI, 5.1 to 5.9) versus 6.8% (95% CI, 6.4 to 7.3); and at 3 years, 7.9% (95% CI, 7.2 to 8.7) versus 9.9% (95% CI, 9.2 to 10.7). P values were calculated with the use of log-rank tests. The insets show the same data on an enlarged y axis.

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A Primary Efficacy End Point

Hazard ratio, 0.85 (95% CI, 0.79–0.92)P<0.001

No. at RiskPlaceboEvolocumab

13,78013,784

13,27813,351

12,82512,939

11,87112,070

76107771

36903746

686689

Placebo

Evolocumab

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Hazard ratio, 0.80 (95% CI, 0.73–0.88)P<0.001

No. at RiskPlaceboEvolocumab

13,78013,784

13,44913,501

13,14213,241

12,28812,456

79448094

38933935

731724

Placebo

Evolocumab3.7

6.8

9.9

3.1

5.5

7.9

6.0

10.7

14.6

5.3

9.1

12.6

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Copyright © 2017 Massachusetts Medical Society. All rights reserved.

Sabatine et al. N Engl J Med. 2017;376(18):1713-1722

26

The new england journal of medicine

n engl j med 379;22 nejm.org November 29, 2018 2097

established in 1812 November 29, 2018 vol. 379 no. 22

The authors’ full names, academic de-grees, and affiliations are listed in the Appendix. Address reprint requests to Dr. Schwartz at the Division of Cardiology, University of Colorado School of Medi-cine, Box B130, Aurora, CO 80045, or at gregory . schwartz@ ucdenver . edu.

* A complete list of the ODYSSEY OUT-COMES committee members, investi-gators, and contributors and their insti-tutional affiliations is provided in the Supplementary Appendix, available with the full text of this article at NEJM.org.

Drs. Schwartz and Steg contributed equally to this article.

This article was published on November 7, 2018, at NEJM.org.

N Engl J Med 2018;379:2097-107.DOI: 10.1056/NEJMoa1801174Copyright © 2018 Massachusetts Medical Society.

BACKGROUNDPatients who have had an acute coronary syndrome are at high risk for recurrent ischemic cardiovascular events. We sought to determine whether alirocumab, a human monoclonal antibody to proprotein convertase subtilisin–kexin type 9 (PCSK9), would improve cardio-vascular outcomes after an acute coronary syndrome in patients receiving high-intensity statin therapy.METHODSWe conducted a multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial involving 18,924 patients who had an acute coronary syndrome 1 to 12 months earlier, had a low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol level of at least 70 mg per deciliter (1.8 mmol per liter), a non−high-density lipoprotein cholesterol level of at least 100 mg per deciliter (2.6 mmol per liter), or an apolipoprotein B level of at least 80 mg per deciliter, and were receiving statin therapy at a high-intensity dose or at the maximum tolerated dose. Patients were randomly assigned to re-ceive alirocumab subcutaneously at a dose of 75 mg (9462 patients) or matching placebo (9462 patients) every 2 weeks. The dose of alirocumab was adjusted under blinded conditions to target an LDL cholesterol level of 25 to 50 mg per deciliter (0.6 to 1.3 mmol per liter). The primary end point was a composite of death from coronary heart disease, nonfatal myocardial infarction, fatal or nonfatal ischemic stroke, or unstable angina requiring hospitalization.RESULTSThe median duration of follow-up was 2.8 years. A composite primary end-point event oc-curred in 903 patients (9.5%) in the alirocumab group and in 1052 patients (11.1%) in the placebo group (hazard ratio, 0.85; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.78 to 0.93; P<0.001). A total of 334 patients (3.5%) in the alirocumab group and 392 patients (4.1%) in the placebo group died (hazard ratio, 0.85; 95% CI, 0.73 to 0.98). The absolute benefit of alirocumab with respect to the composite primary end point was greater among patients who had a baseline LDL cholesterol level of 100 mg or more per deciliter than among patients who had a lower base-line level. The incidence of adverse events was similar in the two groups, with the exception of local injection-site reactions (3.8% in the alirocumab group vs. 2.1% in the placebo group).CONCLUSIONSAmong patients who had a previous acute coronary syndrome and who were receiving high-intensity statin therapy, the risk of recurrent ischemic cardiovascular events was lower among those who received alirocumab than among those who received placebo. (Funded by Sanofi and Regeneron Pharmaceuticals; ODYSSEY OUTCOMES ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT01663402.)

a bs tr ac t

Alirocumab and Cardiovascular Outcomes after Acute Coronary Syndrome

G.G. Schwartz, P.G. Steg, M. Szarek, D.L. Bhatt, V.A. Bittner, R. Diaz, J.M. Edelberg, S.G. Goodman, C. Hanotin, R.A. Harrington, J.W. Jukema, G. Lecorps, K.W. Mahaffey, A. Moryusef, R. Pordy, K. Quintero,

M.T. Roe, W.J. Sasiela, J.-F. Tamby, P. Tricoci, H.D. White, and A.M. Zeiher, for the ODYSSEY OUTCOMES Committees and Investigators*

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n engl j med 379;22 nejm.org November 29, 20182102

T h e n e w e ngl a nd j o u r na l o f m e dic i n e

was 90.7% in the alirocumab group (including time after blinded substitution of placebo for alirocumab) and 90.0% in the placebo group. Ascertainment of the composite primary end point was complete for 99.1% of potential patient-years of follow-up, and ascertainment of death was complete for 99.8% of potential patient-years of follow-up.

Effect of Trial Regimen on Lipid LevelsAt baseline, the mean (±SD) LDL cholesterol level was 92±31 mg per deciliter (2.38±0.80 mmol per liter). In the alirocumab group, the mean LDL cholesterol level (intention-to-treat analysis) at 4 months, 12 months, and 48 months after ran-domization was 40 mg per deciliter (1.0 mmol per liter), 48 mg per deciliter (1.2 mmol per liter), and 66 mg per deciliter (1.7 mmol per liter), re-spectively; in the placebo group, the mean LDL cholesterol level at 4 months, 12 months, and 48 months after randomization was 93 mg per deciliter (2.4 mmol per liter), 96 mg per deciliter (2.5 mmol per liter), and 103 mg per deciliter

(2.7 mmol per liter), respectively (Fig. 1). In the on-treatment analysis in the alirocumab group (which excluded values measured after discon-tinuation of alirocumab and after blinded sub-stitution of placebo for alirocumab), the mean LDL cholesterol level at 4 months, 12 months, and 48 months was 38 mg per deciliter (0.98 mmol per liter), 42 mg per deciliter (1.1 mmol per liter), and 53 mg per deciliter (1.4 mmol per liter), re-spectively; these levels were an average of 62.7%, 61.0%, and 54.7% lower than the respective levels in the placebo group. Other lipid measure-ments are provided in Figure S4 in the Supple-mentary Appendix.

End PointsA composite primary end-point event occurred in 903 patients (9.5%) in the alirocumab group and in 1052 patients (11.1%) in the placebo group (Table 2); The Kaplan–Meier probability estimate at 4 years was 12.5% in the alirocumab group and 14.5% in the placebo group (hazard ratio, 0.85; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.78 to 0.93; P<0.001) (Fig. 2). To prevent the occurrence of one primary end-point event, 49 patients (95% CI, 28 to 164) would need to be treated for 4 years. The effect of alirocumab on the relative risk of the composite primary end point did not differ significantly according to any of the prespecified subgroup variables (Fig. S5 in the Supplementary Appendix).

As would be expected, the incidence of the composite primary end point in the placebo group differed across three categories of baseline LDL cholesterol levels (<80, 80 to <100, and ≥100 mg per deciliter), with the greatest incidence among patients in the highest category. Correspond-ingly, in a nonprespecified analysis, the greatest absolute reduction in risk of the composite pri-mary end point with alirocumab was also shown among the patients who had a baseline LDL cholesterol level of 100 mg or more per deciliter (P<0.001 for the interaction between treatment and baseline LDL cholesterol level) (Table S3 and Fig. S6 in the Supplementary Appendix). To pre-vent the occurrence of one primary end-point event among patients with a baseline LDL cho-lesterol level of 100 mg or more per deciliter, 16 patients (95% CI, 11 to 34) would need to be treated for 4 years. Additional analyses related to categories of baseline LDL cholesterol are

Figure 1. LDL Cholesterol Levels during the Trial.

The intention-to-treat analysis (results shown with solid lines) included all low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol values, including levels measured after premature discontinuation of the trial regimen, levels measured after dose adjustments were made under blinded conditions, and levels measured after blinded substitution of placebo for alirocumab. The on-treatment analysis (results shown with dashed lines) excluded LDL cholesterol levels measured after premature discontinuation of the trial regimen and levels measured after blinded substitution of placebo for alirocumab (but included LDL cho-lesterol levels measured after dose adjustments of alirocumab were made under blinded conditions between the 75-mg dose and the 150-mg dose). To convert the values for LDL cholesterol to millimoles per liter, multiply by 0.02586.

Months since Randomization

Mea

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L C

hole

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g/dl

)

Mea

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L C

hole

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ol (m

mol

/l)

105

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90

30

45

0

15

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1.50

2.00

0.50

1.00

0.000 4 8 12 16 40 44 4828 32 3620 24

93mg/dl

96mg/dl

103mg/dl

101mg/dl

66mg/dl

53mg/dl

Placebo

Alirocumab

40mg/dl

38mg/dl

42mg/dl

48mg/dl

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n engl j med 379;22 nejm.org November 29, 20182104

T h e n e w e ngl a nd j o u r na l o f m e dic i n e

the patients in the placebo group, new-onset diabetes (as defined in the Supplementary Appendix) in 9.6% and 10.1%, respectively, and hemorrhagic stroke (confirmed by adjudication) in less than 0.1% and 0.2%. Neutralizing anti-drug antibodies were detected in 0.5% of the patients in the alirocumab group and in less than 0.1% in the placebo group.

Discussion

Among patients who had a previous acute coro-nary syndrome and in whom lipid levels exceeded specified thresholds despite atorvastatin or rosu-vastatin therapy at a high-intensity dose or at the maximum tolerated dose, the risk of a compos-ite of death from coronary heart disease, non-fatal myocardial infarction, fatal or nonfatal ischemic stroke, or unstable angina requiring hospitalization was lower among those who were treated with alirocumab than among those who received placebo. These benefits were ob-served in the context of background care that

included extensive use of evidence-based treat-ments16-19 as well as the use of a dose-adjustment strategy for alirocumab that targeted an LDL cholesterol level of 25 to 50 mg per deciliter and allowed a level of 15 to 25 mg per deciliter, but that avoided sustained levels below 15 mg per deciliter.

The absolute benefit of alirocumab with re-spect to the composite primary end point was more pronounced among patients who had a baseline LDL cholesterol level of 100 mg or more per deciliter than among patients with a lower baseline LDL cholesterol level. Similarly, a recent meta-analysis showed that intensive lowering of LDL cholesterol (primarily with the use of statins) resulted in a mortality benefit that was observed only among patients with a baseline LDL choles-terol level of 100 mg or more per deciliter.20

Over a median follow-up period of 2.8 years, with more than 8000 patients who were eligible to be followed for 3 to 5 years and 6444 patients who received the assigned alirocumab or place-bo for at least 3 years, the incidence of adverse events did not differ significantly between the two groups, with the exception of local injection-site reactions. Whether the safety and efficacy of alirocumab were influenced by the blinded dose-adjustment strategy, which was designed to miti-gate the occurrence of very low levels of LDL cholesterol, is unknown. Serious safety concerns were also not observed with evolocumab in the FOURIER (Further Cardiovascular Outcomes Re-search with PCSK9 Inhibition in Subjects with Elevated Risk) trial,11 which had no lower limit for allowable LDL cholesterol levels; however, that trial had a shorter median follow-up, and very few patients were followed for 3 or more years. Neither trial can fully predict longer-term safety of treatment with a PCSK9 monoclonal antibody.

Lowering of LDL cholesterol levels with alirocu-mab was sustained but to a lesser extent than that reported in previous trials that had a shorter duration.9 The increase in LDL cholesterol over time in the intention-to-treat analysis reflects premature discontinuation of treatment, dose reduction or substitution of placebo for alirocu-mab under blinded conditions, and attenuation of the intensity of statin treatment. The last fac-tor probably also contributed to the rise in LDL cholesterol observed in the placebo group, in the

Figure 2. Cumulative Incidence of the Composite Primary End Point.

Shown is the cumulative incidence of the primary efficacy end point (a com-posite of death from coronary heart disease, nonfatal myocardial infarction, fatal or nonfatal ischemic stroke, or unstable angina requiring hospitaliza-tion). The Kaplan–Meier rates for the primary end point at 4 years were 12.5% (95% CI, 11.5 to 13.5) in the alirocumab group and 14.5% (95% CI, 13.5 to 15.6) in the placebo group. The inset shows the same data on an enlarged y axis. The P value was calculated with the use of log-rank tests, stratified according to geographic region.

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94629462

88058846

82018345

34713574

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Alirocumab

Placebo

Hazard ratio, 0.85 (95% CI, 0.78–0.93)P<0.001

The New England Journal of Medicine Downloaded from nejm.org at USP on January 30, 2019. For personal use only. No other uses without permission.

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N Engl J Med 2018;379:2097-107 N=18.824

PCSK9 Inhibitors Adverse Events

• Cold like symptoms (not different from placebo)• Neurocognitive changes not detected in Ebbinghaus• Diabetes ?? (genetic studies suggest)

27

Other less used medications

Resins /Niacin• Resins

– Colesevelam and colestiramine– Reduce cholesterol absorption

(bile acid binding)

– Increase LDLR expression– Reduce LDL-C 20-25%– Colestiramine (reduced MI)– Colesevelam (reduces glucose)– Side effects:

• GI• Reduce drug absorption

• Niacin– Reduce FFA input to liver– Increase Apo A-I synthesis– Reduce Apo B synthesis– Reduce LDL-25-30%– Reduce TG 20-30%– Increase HDL-C 20-30%– Isolated use reduce MI– Side effects

• Flushing• Gout• Increase glucose

29

Drugs for Homozygous FH

30

LDL Receptor and Effect of Lipid Lowering Therapies

31

2 Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol March 2018

HoFH patients with 1 normolipidemic individual and 5 HeFH patients. Experiments followed a rigorous sequence previously used by the authors18 that simulate lipid-lowering treatments usually prescribed to FH patients, including stimulation of LDLR expression by 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-coenzyme reductase inhibition with mevastatin, incubation with recom-binant PCSK9 to facilitate LDLR degradation, and incubation with a PCSK9 neutralizing antibody. Ten patients were simple homozygotes for the same LDLR mutations, whereas 5 were identical compound heterozygotes and 1 was homozygous for a pathogenic APOB variant that reduced ligand affinity but did not affect receptor activity. There was a range of different LDLR mutations in the HeFH patients, whereas no mutations were found in controls. As expected, at baseline, lymphocytes from HoFH patients, except for those from the patient with the homozygous APOB mutation, had reduced cell surface LDLR expression compared with lymphocytes from both non-FH and HeFH. Lymphocytes from HoFH patients who carried at least 1 receptor-negative mutation showed the lowest LDLR expression, with greater expression seen in lymphocytes from patients with 2 receptor-defective alleles. Statin treat-ment increased, whereas PCSK9 incubation reduced, LDLR expression. The PCSK9-neutralizing antibody restored LDLR expression. For all experiments, effects on LDLR expression were attenuated in lymphocytes taken from individuals with homozygous receptor-negative mutations.

In addition, the authors were able to relate the ex vivo LDLR expression with the observed clinical impact of evo-locumab treatment in the TAUSSIG. Lymphocytes that had

higher LDLR expression came from patients who had the low-est plasma LDL-C and apoB concentrations, both before and after evolocumab treatment. LDLR expression was inversely correlated with baseline and on-treatment concentrations of LDL-C and apoB. Also, in a subset of individuals with the same molecular defect, there was a direct correlation between maximal LDLR expression and changes in plasma LDL-C concentrations after treatment. Interestingly, LDLR expres-sion varied both before and after incubation with the PCSK9 inhibitor in individuals who carried the identical molecular defects, suggesting a modulatory role for nongenomic or post-translational factors.

Importantly, no consistent correlation was found between LDLR expression and Lp(a) [lipoprotein(a)] concentrations. The role of the LDLR and PCSK9 inhibition in Lp(a) clear-ance remains unclear and is still a matter of controversy, especially in FH individuals; further studies are necessary to clarify this issue.19

The findings of Thedrez et al16 can be clinically translated to suggest that HoFH patients who have the most severe form of receptor defect (ie, receptor-negative mutations) had less LDLR expression and activity, and thus responded less or not at all to PCSK9 inhibition. The results indicate that baseline LDLR expression and function are important determinants of LDL-C lowering in HoFH.

The study is limited by the small number of subjects, a common feature in studies of HoFH patients, and by the fact that LDLR expression but not function or activity were evaluated. At any rate, the authors should be commended for

Figure. Mechanisms involved with low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) lowering by medications approved for homozygous familial hypercholesterolemia and their possible associations with LDLR (LDL receptor) expression/function. apoB indicates apolipoprotein B; HMGCR, 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-coenzyme reductase; IDOL, inducible degrader of LDL receptor; MTP, microsomal triglyceride trans-fer protein; PCSK9, proprotein convertase subtilisin kexin type 9; SREBP2, steroid regulatory element binding protein-2; and VLDL, very-low-density lipoprotein.

AQ10

AQ11

Sridevi 01/25/18 4 Color Fig: F1 17:42 Art: ATV310675

Santos RD. ATVB 2018 ;38:481-483

Future Treatments?

32

Khvorova A. N Engl J Med 2017;376:4-7.

Inclisiran Chemical Configuration and Mechanism of Action.

Small RNA interference Reduce cholesterolWith 2-3 injections a year?

ATP Citrate Lyase Inhibition

Bempedoic Acid

34

Use of Bempedoic acid to treat hypercholesterolemia in patients with

statin intolerance

Thompson P et al. Journal of Clinical Lipidology, 9(3):295-304

• LDL-C is an independent risk factor for atherosclerosis• There are many proven therapies that reduce LDL-C and

prevent CVD• Statins are the cornerstone of LDL-C lowering• Other drugs should be added to control LDL-C

adequately (ezetimibe, PCSK9 inhibitors)– Cost effectiveness

• Newer medications?

Conclusions

36