Factory Supply High Quality Cholesterol Powder  CAS. 57-88-5  99% Purity

Cholesterol is required to build and maintain membranes; it modulates membrane fluidity over the range of physiological temperatures. The hydroxyl group on cholesterol interacts with the polar head groups of the membrane phospholipids and sphingolipids, while the bulky steroid and the hydrocarbon chain are embedded in the membrane, alongside the nonpolar fatty acid chain of the other lipids. Through the interaction with the phospholipid fatty acid chains, cholesterol increases membrane packing, which reduces membrane fluidity.In this structural role, cholesterol reduces the permeability of the plasma membrane to neutral solutes, protons, (positive hydrogen ions) and sodium ions.