Olkkonen Vesa M, Gylling Helena, Ikonen Elina
Minerva Foundation Institute for Medical Research, Biomedicum 2U, FI-00290 Helsinki, Finland; Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Medicine, FI-00014 University of Helsinki, Finland.
University of Helsinki and Helsinki University Central Hospital, Internal Medicine, Helsinki FI-00029 HUS, Finland.
J Steroid Biochem Mol Biol. 2017 May;169:4-9. doi: 10.1016/j.jsbmb.2015.12.026. Epub 2015 Dec 28.
Non-cholesterol sterols are present in our body at very low concentrations as compared to cholesterol. Small changes in the structure of sterol molecules confer them highly distinct biological activities. The best-known example are steroid hormones derived from cholesterol. During the past decade, our knowledge of also other biomolecules related to or derived from cholesterol, particularly plant sterols, biosynthetic precursors of cholesterol, and oxysterols, has expanded rapidly. In this review article we recapitulate the latest insights into the properties and physiological activities of these non-cholesterol sterols, as well as their importance in disease processes and potential as diagnostic biomarkers.
与胆固醇相比，非胆固醇甾醇在我们体内的浓度非常低。甾醇分子结构的微小变化赋予它们高度独特的生物活性。最著名的例子是源自胆固醇的类固醇激素。在过去十年中，我们对与胆固醇相关或源自胆固醇的其他生物分子的了解迅速扩展，特别是植物甾醇、胆固醇的生物合成前体和氧化甾醇。在这篇综述文章中，我们总结了对这些非胆固醇甾醇的性质和生理活性的最新见解，以及它们在疾病过程中的重要性和作为诊断生物标志物的潜力。
