Cholesterol
Description of Cholesterol:
Cholesterol is a lipidic, waxy alcohol found in the cell membranes and
transported in the blood plasma of all animals. It is an essential component of
mammalian cell membranes where it is required to establish proper membrane
permeability and fluidity. Cholesterol is the principal sterol synthesized by
animals, but small quantities are synthesized in other eukaryotes, such as
plants and fungi. It is almost completely absent among prokaryotes, which
include bacteria. Cholesterol is classified as a sterol (a contraction of
steroid and alcohol).
Although cholesterol is essential for life, high levels in circulation are
associated with atherosclerosis. Cholesterol can be ingested in the diet,
recycled within the body through reabsorption of bile in the digestive tract,
and produced de novo. For a person of about 150 pounds (68 kg), typical total
body cholesterol content is about 35 g, typical daily dietary intake is 200–300
mg in the United States and societies with similar dietary patterns and 1 g per
day is synthesized de novo.
The name cholesterol originates from the Greek chole- (bile) and stereos (solid),
and the chemical suffix -ol for an alcohol, as François Poulletier de la Salle
first identified cholesterol in solid form in gallstones, in 1769. However, it
was only in 1815 that chemist Eugène Chevreul named the compound "cholesterine".
Specific Cholesterol Information
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