Amarin Corp Plc (AMRN)

[Pharmacydude]

NS/MarkRoth2
Not true. The cerebral vasculature has what is called the “blood/brain barrier” or BBB. The blood vessels in the brain are less porous and allow fewer chemicals to pass through, thereby protecting the brain from potentially toxic chemicals. Most relevant is that LDL cholesterol (the lipoprotein vesicles that carry cholesterol and triglycerides, which are fat soluble, in the aqueous plasma) can not penetrate the BBB and therefore the brain must produce 100% of its cholesterol needed and the brain must rely on blood glucose for energy. In spite of its reduced permeability to LDL cholesterol, you still get cholesterol driven plaque accumulating in the cerebral vasculature in the same way as you get in the coronary vasculature. Once the plaque develops the inflammation follows and plaque rupture can cause a stroke. EPA reduces that inflammation as well as causes an increase in nitric oxide production, which is a vasodilator, and opens blood vessels.
Therefore, fundamentally, there is good reason to expect the same benefits we see with EPA in the coronary arteries to happen in the cerebral arteries. This is the primary outcome being measured in BRAVE - increase in circulation.