This study investigated the effects of rosuvastatin, a lipid-lowering statin, on parameters of reverse cholesterol transport (RCT). For that purpose, a randomized, placebo-controlled, cross-over trial comparing the effect of 4 weeks of rosuvastatin or placebo in 25 healthy men (49 ± 7 years) with the metabolic syndrome was designed. As expected, results showed that anthropometric parameters (body weight and body mass index) did not differ at the end of either placebo and rosuvastatin treatment. However, significant reductions were observed in total cholesterol (-43%), triglycerides (-38%), and LDL cholesterol (-60%), while HDL cholesterol increased significantly by +8% with rosuvastatin. Moreover, rosuvastatin produced no significant changes in glucose and insulin concentrations as well as in insulin resistance estimated by the homeostasis model assessment. Rosuvastatin had no significant effect on plasma concentrations of apolipoprotein AI, preβ-1 HDL, and lipoprotein AI (Lp AI)/ AII HDL subfractions, but it did increase the concentrations of Lp AI particles. Moreover, lecithin cholesterol acyl transferase and cholesteryl ester transfer protein (CETP) activities, CETP mass, and apolipoprotein CIII concentrations were also significantly reduced with rosuvastatin (p<0.05). Finally, cholesterol efflux was, on average, significantly reduced in plasma following rosuvastatin treatment, and HDL concentrations were no longer significantly and inversely associated with cholesterol efflux after treatment with rosuvastatin in comparison to baseline.
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