A new cholesterol-lowering drug may be able to cut cholesterol levels by more than half, according to new research.

US trials on the new drug, called ALN-PCS, showed that one dose cut 'bad' LDL cholesterol by up to 60%.

The drug works by switching off the production of a protein called PCSK9, which reduces the body's ability to reduce cholesterol.

People with high cholesterol levels are at increased risk of heart disease.,

Experts now believe the development of the new drug, although it is in its early stages, could provide an alternative for patients with high cholesterol who do not respond to the existing statin drugs.

The firm developing the new drug also believes that it could be combined with statins to improve cholesterol-lowering.

The research is published in The Lancet.