This book provides basic knowledge of the biology, chemistry, and function of oxysterols and its derivatives as well as of phytosterols in numerous human diseases.The book is divided into six sections and begins with an introduction to the biological and chemical properties of oxysterols and its derivatives as well as phytosterols, their synthesis, and the methods currently used for their detection in various biospecimens. The following section discusses in detail the various effects of oxysterols on numerous human diseases, including infectious diseases, inflammatory and autoimmune diseases, atherosclerosis, and cancer, as well as neurological and neuropsychiatric disorders. Importantly, the potential of oxysterols as biomarkers for some of these diseases is also highlighted. The book concludes with an outlook on the pharmacological and nutritional effects of oxysterols and phytosterols and their potential use by the food, and pharmaceutical industries. Aiming to provide an in-depth overview of the biological and the chemical properties of oxysterols and phytosterols and their implications for human health, this book will be of interest to basic and clinical scientists, as well as to anyone working in the food or pharmaceutical industry who is exploring the potential of oxysterols and phytosterols.

Autorentext

Gérard Lizard is an INSA-Lyon (France) biochemist engineer, PhD in Molecular and Cellular Biology and PhD in Human Biology. After a post-doc in pharmaceutical industry, he was recruited to INSERM in 1991 and since 2012 has been director of the Biochemistry Laboratory 'Peroxisome, Inflammation and Lipid Metabolism' at the University of Burgundy (Dijon, France). He was one of the first researchers to work on cell death by apoptosis associated with oxidative stress in the field of atherosclerosis, which led him to demonstrate that certain oxidized derivatives of cholesterol (oxysterols) induce a mode of cell death by oxiapoptophagy characterized by oxidative stress, apoptosis and autophagy. Gérard Lizard has gradually oriented his research on aging (biogerontology) and the pathophysiology of age-related diseases by focusing on the lipotoxicity of oxysterols and the impact on organelles (mitochondria, peroxisome). Gérard Lizard (Inserm Researcher) has been the director of 20 PhD theses and is the co-funding member of the European Network for Oxysterol Research (ENOR).