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Researchers at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas are conducting genetic research on inherited forms of high cholesterol. They have found that the liver's inability to clear fats from the blood is the common thread among the four different types of inherited high cholesterol. This suggests that in the general population, some yet-unidentified genes may impair the liver's ability to clear LDL cholesterol.
Source: Science May 18, 2001.

Scientists at the Catholic University of Leuven, Belgium have suggested that measurement of circulating oxidized low-density lipoprotein (LDL) is a sensitive test for identifying patients with coronary artery disease and should be included in cardiovascular disease testing along with LDL cholesterol, total cholesterol-to-HDL cholesterol, and triglycerides.
Source: Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis, and Vascular Biology, May 2001;21:844-848.

Researchers at the University of Miami have discovered that levels of endothelial microparticles (EMPs) in the blood plasma may help evaluate the progression of multiple sclerosis and a good marker of endothelial damage. The measurements eventually may be used in combination with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), which is already used to keep track of MS, the report indicates. The research may also lead to more than better monitoring of the disease.
Source: Neurology, May 2001;56:1319-1324.