Page "Low-density lipoprotein" Paragraph 22

* Some Tocotrienols, especially delta-and gamma-tocotrienols, are being promoted as statin alternative non-prescription agents to treat high cholesterol, having been shown in vitro to have an effect.

In particular, gamma-tocotrienol appears to be another HMG-CoA reductase inhibitor, and can reduce cholesterol production.

As with statins, this decrease in intra-hepatic ( liver ) LDL levels may induce hepatic LDL receptor up-regulation, also decreasing plasma LDL levels.

As always, a key issue is how benefits and complications of such agents compare with statins — molecular tools that have been analyzed in large numbers of human research and clinical trials since the mid-1970s.