Substrate Report for: Cholesterol

Cholesterol is the principal sterol of all higher animals, distributed in body tissues, especially the brain and spinal cord, and in animal fats and oils. Cholesterol is an important component of the membranes of cells, providing stability. It is the major precursor for the synthesis of vitamin D, of the various steroid hormones, including cortisol, cortisone, and aldosterone in the adrenal glands, and of the sex hormones progesterone, estrogen, and testosterone. Cholesterol also has an important role for the brain synapses as well as in the immune system. In conditions of elevated low density lipoproteins (LDL), cholesterol often forms plaque deposits in the walls of arteries (atherosclerosis)