Cholesterol ester transfer protein polymorphism rs5882 is associated with triglyceride-lowering in response to plant sterol consumption

Recent work suggests that plant sterol (PS) consumption may lower triglyceride (TG) concentrations; however, human clinical trial evidence is inconsistent. We associated SNP r5882 in cholesteryl ester transfer protein with changes in TG concentrations following PS consumption (2 g/day for 4 weeks) in a dual-centre, single-blind, randomized, crossover trial. TG concentrations were lowered in homozygotes for the minor G-allele of rs5882 (–0.46 ± 0.13 mmol/L, p = 0.002, n = 10); there was no effect in the A-allele carriers.