APOC1 and atherosclerosis: However, the presence of the APOC1 transgene makes data generated by this model as far as the contribution of the APOE3 mutation to atherosclerosis difficult to interpret because APOC1 aggravates atherosclerosis and increases plasma TGs and cholesterol (71), maybe in part through its ability to inhibit LPL activity (72) and reduce hepatic VLDL clearance (73).