Читать книгу Essential Endocrinology and Diabetes - Richard I. G. Holt - Страница 23

Steroid hormones are lipid‐soluble molecules derived from cholesterol. Cholesterol is present in all cells as a basic constituent of the cell membrane. However, in the steroid hormone synthesizing cells of the adrenal cortex, gonad and placenta, it is also extracted from the circulation and stored intracellularly as cholesterol esters. Steroid hormones are insoluble in water and circulate largely bound to plasma proteins.