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What's so special about cholesterol?

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Lipids

Abstract

Cholesterol (or other higher sterols such as ergosterol and phytosterols) is universally present in large amounts (20–40 mol%) in eukaryotic plasma membranes, whereas it is universally absent in the membranes of prokaryotes. Cholesterol has a unique ability to increase lipid order in fluid membranes while maintaining fluidity and diffusion rates. Cholesterol imparts low permeability barriers to lipid membranes and provides for large mechanical coherence. A short topical review is given of these special properties of cholesterol in relation to the structure of membranes, with results drawn from a variety of theoretical and experimental studies. Particular focus is put on cholesterol's ability to promote a special membrane phase, the liquidordered phase, which is unique for cholesterol (and other higher sterols like ergosterol) and absent in membranes containing the cholesterol precursor lanosterol. Cholesterol's role in the formation of special membrane domains and so-called rafts is discussed.

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Abbreviations

7DHC:

7-dihydrocholesterol

DMPC:

1,2-dimyristoyl phosphocholine

DOPC:

1,2-dioleoyl phosphocholine

DPPC:

1,2-palmitoyl-3-phosphocholine

GPL:

glycerophospholipid

PI:

phosphoinositol

POPC:

phosphocholine

PPet-PC:

1-palmitoyl-2-petroselinoyl-3-phosphocholine

SC:

Saccharomyces cerevisiae

SLOS:

Smith-Lemli-Opitz syndrome

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. MEMPHYS-Center for Biomembrane Physics, Department of Physics, University of Southern Denmark, DK-5230, Odense M, Denmark

    Ole G. Mouritsen

  2. Department of Physics, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada

    Martin J. Zuckermann

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  1. Ole G. Mouritsen
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  2. Martin J. Zuckermann
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Correspondence to Ole G. Mouritsen.

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Mouritsen, O.G., Zuckermann, M.J. What's so special about cholesterol?. Lipids 39, 1101–1113 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11745-004-1336-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11745-004-1336-x

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