Plasma membrane steroidogenic cholesterol: the relative importance of membrane internalization rate and cholesterol extraction rate of internalized membrane.

Most cholesterol destined to become steroid hormone passes through the plasma membrane. Using MA-10 Leydig tumor cells as a model system, we determined that plasma membrane cholesterol disappeared 2.5-fold faster in cAMP-stimulated cells. Stimulation of MA-10 cells increased internalization so that 1.4-fold more membrane cycled through the cell per unit time. Increased internalization accounted for 26% of the cholesterol actually lost from cycling membrane. The remaining 74% was accounted for by increasing the extraction of cholesterol from internalized membrane.