PCSK9 and familial hypercholesterolemia: Alirocumab (trade name Praluent, Sanofi Aventis), a PCSK9 inhibitor monoclonal antibody, was approved by the FDA on July 24, 2015, for the treatment of patients with heterozygous familial hypercholesterolemia or atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease based on five double-blind placebo-controlled trials that enrolled 3,499 patients.