Pollen sterols are highly diverse but phylogenetically conserved.

ABSTRACT: Phytosterols regulate cell membrane fluidity and are precursors for plant hormones and secondary metabolites in plants. Insects are auxotrophic for sterols; therefore, they have to consume phytosterols and dealkylate them to cholesterol. Some insects, including bees, which rely on dietary sources, primarily pollen, for sterols, cannot modify them; therefore, they have adapted to use them unmodified as they occur in pollen. Here, using high resolution chemical analysis, we describe the distribution of 78 different pollen sterols from 295 UK wildflower taxa and use this data to develop an evolutionary rationale for the diversity of sterols in pollen compared to vegetative tissues. The sterol occurrence in pollen was a function of plant lineage and conserved in groups as high as subfamily. Mo

SUBMITTER: Baker EC 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12445805 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature