Cholesterol synthesis and storage in adipose tissue.

A markedly-high cholesterol production characterizes human obesity. So far, the site of origin of this extra synthesis has not been defined, even though the liver may play an important role. A marked expansion of adipose tissue in obesity raises a question on the local cholesterol synthesis, particularly because this organ can store a lot of cholesterol and its precursors, methyl sterols and squalene particularly. Some aspects of cholesterol synthesis and storage in adipose tissue will be dealt with in this paper. Available data have demonstrated that human fat tissue is capable of synthesizing cholesterol at a low rate.