TY - JOUR AU - Strauss, Jerome, F. AB - I. Introduction Cholesterol is an obligate intermediate in steroidogenesis. It may be synthesized by steroidogenic cells or taken up from circulating lipoproteins. In the adrenal, ovary, placenta, and possibly the testes of many species, including man, lipoprotein cholesterol is the major source of steroidogenic substrate. Lipoprotein cholesterol uptake is hormonally regulated in these tissues, with the exception of the placenta, and coordinated with intracellular cholesterol synthesis and mobilization of cholesteryl esters to ensure a continuous supply of free cholesterol for steroid synthesis. When the rate of cholesterol uptake exceeds the rate of steroidogenesis, intracellular cholesterol synthesis is suppressed and cholesterol in excess of cellular needs is esterified and stored for future use. During the last decade the mechanisms and regulation of lipoprotein cholesterol uptake by steroidogenic tissues have been elucidated. Two distinct lipoprotein-specific, hormonally regulated mechanisms for taking up extracellular cholesterol have been found in steroidogenic cells. Not all steroidogenic tissues possess both mechanisms. It is our purpose to review these findings. This content is only available as a PDF. Author notes * The work of John Gwynne reported in this review was supported in part by grants from the National Institutes of Health (HL-20061) and National Foundation March of Dimes (1-725) and performed during his tenure as an Established Investigator of the American Heart Association (80-192). The work of Jerome Strauss has been supported in part by grants from the National Institutes of Health (HD-12314 and HD-06274) and a grant from the Rockefeller Foundation. Copyright © 1982 by The Endocrine Society TI - The Role of Lipoproteins in Steroidogenesis and Cholesterol Metabolism in Steroidogenic Glands JF - Endocrine Reviews DO - 10.1210/edrv-3-3-299 DA - 1982-07-01 UR - https://www.deepdyve.com/lp/oxford-university-press/the-role-of-lipoproteins-in-steroidogenesis-and-cholesterol-metabolism-tw8RlEW79F SP - 299 EP - 329 VL - 3 IS - 3 DP - DeepDyve ER -