AUTHOR=Nunes Valéria Sutti , da Silva Eliton Juniro , Ferreira Guilherme da Silva , Assis Sayonara Ivana Santos de , Cazita Patrícia Miralda , Nakandakare Edna Regina , Zago Vanessa Helena de Souza , de Faria Eliana Cotta , Quintão Eder Carlos Rocha TITLE=The Plasma Distribution of Non-cholesterol Sterol Precursors and Products of Cholesterol Synthesis and Phytosterols Depend on HDL Concentration JOURNAL=Frontiers in Nutrition VOLUME=Volume 9 - 2022 YEAR=2022 URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/nutrition/articles/10.3389/fnut.2022.723555 DOI=10.3389/fnut.2022.723555 ISSN=2296-861X ABSTRACT=Non-cholesterol sterols are transported in plasma lipoproteins and are consequently important in cholesterol metabolism. We investigated the distribution of non-cholesterol sterol precursors of cholesterol synthesis (NCSPCS), oxysterols, and phytosterols in lipoproteins of healthy subjects differing according to HDL-Cholesterol (HDL-C) plasma levels. Elevated NCSPCS (desmosterol, lathosterol) in the High HDL group suggests that HDL exports these sterols from cells but not the cholesterol metabolite 24-OHC which was higher in the Low HDL group than in the High HDL group. 27-hydroxycholesterol (27OH-C) plasma levels did not differ between groups. Percentage of NCSPCS and phytosterols predominates in LDL, but did not differ between groups. 30% of desmosterol and lathosterol are present in HDL, with the High HDL group carrying higher percentage of these sterols. A high percentage of campesterol and sitosterol in HDL suggests that phytosterols are absorbed by enterocytes and that HDL could be a marker of the ABCA1/ApoA1 intestinal activity.