TL;DR
Some people are born with a cholesterol problem, and some are born with the opposite: bodies that clear the artery-clogging kind out of the blood all by themselves. A one-time CRISPR infusion headed into its first human trial tries to hand the first group what the second group got at birth. Instead of switching a gene off, it makes two small edits to the control panel of the LDL-receptor gene, the instruction for the protein that pulls "bad" cholesterol out of the blood. More receptors, more cleanup. In four monkey studies presented at a heart meeting in Chicago on Nov. 8 and reported on Nov. 11, one dose cut LDL cholesterol by 90% or more and the drop was still there at ten months, with receptor protein up six-fold (company data, four animals per dose group). The first human dosing is set for this year and early safety numbers for the first quarter of 2027. Our odds on when a single shot replaces a lifetime of cholesterol pills are below the line, along with the timeline of breakthroughs that gets there, for anyone who cares to subscribe.
Below the line, for paid subscribers: The full story: where it stands, how we got here and what's dated next; our labeled speculation on what it adds up to; and every source.