LDLR and hyperlipidemia: Since loss of Idol differentially affected cholesterol and TG in chow-fed hamsters and LDLR+/-hamsters were susceptible to diet-induced hyperlipidemia and atherosclerosis, we next developed Idol−/−LDLR+/- hamsters fed a high-fat diet (HFD) containing 10% lard and 0.5% cholesterol for 16 weeks to study the impact of Idol on hyperlipidemia and atherogenesis under the condition of dietary intervention.