METHODOLOGY ARTICLE p

http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2164/14/237drugs designed for human target proteins [3]. In contrast1F. Hoffmann-La Roche AG, pRED, Postfach, 4070, Basel, Switzerland Full list of author information is available at the end of the articleBackground Clinical dyslipidaemia is defined as an abnormal concentra-tion of lipids in the blood circulation caused by cholesterol-rich diet or exposure to elevated insulin levels. It is long known that elevated High-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (HDL-c) levels are associated with reduction of the risk of atherosclerotic cardiovascular diseases [1]. This effect is mechanistically related to reverse cholesterol transport (RCT), a process that mediates excretion of excess HDL cholesterol from peripheral tissues to the liver ending ul-timately in the faeces [2]. Cholesteryl ester transfer protein (CETP) plays a central role in this process and it was re-cognized that pharmacological inhibition of CETP me-diated cholesterol transport would raise HDL-c levels resulting in protection from coronary heart disease. The Syrian hamster Mesocricetus auratus has become an important animal model for pre-clinical dyslipidaemia research because HDL-c levels are raised in response to * Correspondence