SQLE, also named as ERG1, SE and SM, belongs to the squalene monooxygenase family. It catalyzes the first oxygenation step in cholesterol synthesis, acting on squalene before cyclization into the basic steroid structure. SQLE may serve as a flux-controlling enzyme beyond 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-coenzyme A reductase (HMGR, considered as rate limiting). It is also posttranslationally regulated by cholesterol-dependent proteasomal degradation.(PMID:21356516) The MW of SQLE is about 64kd.
