Cholesterol metabolism on stem cell fate determination: a frontier horizon

Boyang Xu; Ling Li; Qian Wei; Yuli Wang; He Huang; Tao Pang; Zhijian Wei; Guoqing Zheng; Yue Li

doi:10.1186/s13287-025-04687-7

Cholesterol metabolism on stem cell fate determination: a frontier horizon

Stem Cell Res Ther. 2025 Oct 14;16(1):561. doi: 10.1186/s13287-025-04687-7.

Authors

Boyang Xu¹, Ling Li², Qian Wei³, Yuli Wang⁴, He Huang⁵, Tao Pang⁶, Zhijian Wei⁷, Guoqing Zheng⁸, Yue Li^{9

10}

Affiliations

¹ State Key Laboratory of Mechanism and Quality of Chinese Medicine, Institute of Chinese Medical Sciences, University of Macau, Macau, 999078, China.
² School of Pharmacy, Meishan Pharmaceutical Vocational College, Meishan, Sichuan, 620200, China.
³ Gansu Provincial Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Lanzhou, 730050, China.
⁴ Division of Neurobiology, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, 21218, USA.
⁵ School of Synthetic Biology and Biomanufacturing, State Key Laboratory of Synthetic Biology, Key Laboratory of Biological and Pharmaceutical Engineering, Tianjin University, Tianjin, 300350, China.
⁶ State Key Laboratory of Natural Medicines, New Drug Screening and Pharmacodynamics Evaluation Center, China Pharmaceutical University, Nanjing, 210009, China. tpang@cpu.edu.cn.
⁷ Department of Orthopaedics, Advanced Medical Research Institute, Qilu Hospital of Shandong University, Shandong University Centre for Orthopaedics, Shandong University, Jinan, Shandong, 250012, China. weizhijian2002@126.com.
⁸ Department of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang Chinese Medical University (Zhejiang Provincial Hospital of Chinese Medicine), Hangzhou, 310006, China. gq_zheng@sohu.com.
⁹ State Key Laboratory of Mechanism and Quality of Chinese Medicine, Institute of Chinese Medical Sciences, University of Macau, Macau, 999078, China. kevinyli@um.edu.mo.
¹⁰ Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Macau, Macau, 999078, China. kevinyli@um.edu.mo.

Abstract

Cholesterol, a key steroid in cell membranes and organelles, is vital for processes like migration and apoptosis, regulated by biosynthesis, uptake, and esterification. Its metabolism significantly impacts stem cell fate via pathways like AKT/FOXO1 and Notch, influencing proliferation, differentiation, and migration. Thus, cholesterol emerges as a promising therapeutic target. This review aims to shed light on the impact of cholesterol metabolism on stem cells and explores cholesterol-targeting drugs' potential in regenerative medicine. Our purpose is to elucidate cholesterol's role in stem cell function and guide therapeutic development.

Keywords: Cholesterol metabolism; Fate determination; Stem cell.

Publication types

Review

MeSH terms

Animals
Cell Differentiation
Cell Proliferation
Cholesterol* / metabolism
Humans
Signal Transduction
Stem Cells* / cytology
Stem Cells* / metabolism

Substances

Cholesterol

Abstract

Publication types

MeSH terms

Substances

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