sterol

American  

[steer-awl, -ol, ster-] / ˈstɪər ɔl, -ɒl, ˈstɛr- /

noun

Biochemistry.

1. any of a group of solid, mostly unsaturated, polycyclic alcohols, as cholesterol and ergosterol, derived from plants or animals.

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sterol British  

/ ˈstɛrɒl /

noun

1. biochem any of a group of natural steroid alcohols, such as cholesterol and ergosterol, that are waxy insoluble substances

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sterol Scientific  

/ stîr′ôl′ /

1. Any of various alcohols having the structure of a steroid, usually with a hydroxyl group (OH) attached to the third carbon atom. Sterols are found in the tissues of animals, plants, fungi, and yeasts and include cholesterol.

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Etymology

Origin of sterol

1910–15; extracted from such words as cholesterol, ergosterol, etc.

Example Sentences

The earlier research had identified a 30-carbon sterol tied to a specific enzyme encoded by a gene common in demosponges.

From Science Daily • Feb. 27, 2026

This absence has led to speculation that before 800 million years ago, eukaryotes were not abundant enough to leave a detectable sterol trace.

From Scientific American • Jun. 13, 2023

And in 1.3-billion-year-old rocks, they found derivatives that matched the pattern produced by 24-methylene cycloartenol, which is one step further along the sterol pathway than cycloartenol.

From Science Magazine • Jun. 7, 2023

The early steps in the saponin biosynthetic pathway that are presumably regulated by TSARL1 are shared by other pathways, including sterol biosynthesis.

From Nature • Feb. 7, 2017

The cancerogenic coal tar "sterol" causes the same sex changes in rats as does the hormone theelin.

From Time Magazine Archive