This Figure simply repeats the first Figure, as a way of visualizing the efflux of cholesterol out of the macrophages, where it is a cause of CAD, and back through the reverse cholesterol transport mechanism. In summary, one way of understanding what the preceding experiments have shown is to imagine that the arrows, showing the reverse movement of the cholesterol via the HDL function, should apparently vary in size in different individuals, depending on the “capacity” (or “functionality”) of their HDL cholesterol to promote this cholesterol efflux. These data strongly support the idea that, in fact, robust measurements of HDL’s functional ability to promote cholesterol efflux from cells, in particular, macrophages, is strongly (and independently of HDL or ApoA- I serum levels) associated with 2 measures of atherosclerotic disease burden, cIMT and coronary angiography.
J Clin Lipidol. 2011; 5(6).