-sterol

A sterol.

The second element of cholesterol, the first member of the group to be identified, derived from Greek stereos, stiff or solid.

The sterols are naturally occurring unsaturated steroid alcohols, typically waxy solids. An example is lanosterol, a precursor in the biosynthesis of cholesterol and a component of lanolin. Sterols that come from plants are collectively called phytosterols (Greek phuton, a plant), examples being ergosterol, from ergot and many other fungi, and sitosterol (Greek sitos, grain, food), a group of sterols obtained from various plant sources, including corn oil.