Researchers at McGill University tested whether inhibiting cholesteryl ester transfer protein (CETP) — a protein that shuttles cholesterol between lipoproteins in the blood — could protect against Alzheimer's disease. Using a mouse model engineered to develop amyloid plaques, they administered evacetrapib, a CETP inhibitor originally developed for heart disease. Mice with reduced CETP activity maintained their memory even as amyloid pathology progressed. Surprisingly, the benefit appeared independent of classic Alzheimer's markers like plaque load, and was likely linked to preserved vascular health and increased hippocampal cholesterol. The team also compared findings against human cerebrospinal fluid proteomic data from the PREVENT-AD cohort — a group of cognitively normal adults at familial risk for Alzheimer's — and found the mouse model reflected real pre-symptomatic human changes. This points to CETP inhibitors as a promising repurposing candidate to delay cognitive decline.
