<div style="text-align: justify;">After slaughter, meat tissues lose their antioxidant defences, and more complex oxidative processes are initiated to form cholesterol oxidation products (COPs) &ndash; oxygenated derivatives of cholesterol. The oxysterol content in meat and meat products depends on factors such as temperature, heating time, storage time, packing conditions, and illumination. The composition and content of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) and the age and the sex of the animal also influence the COP rate. The most common oxysterols present in meat and its products are 7-ketocholesterol, 20&alpha;-hydroxycholesterol, 25-hydroxycholesterol and &alpha;, &beta;- epoxycholesterol. Oxysterols participate in a number of biological activities, such as cholesterol metabolism, the regulation of membrane fluidity and intracellular signalling pathways, by the activation of specific mediators, such as LXR, SREBPs and OSBP/ORP. However, their role in inflammatory, apoptotic, mutagenic, carcinogenic and toxic mechanisms can elucidate their effect on human health.</div>

Cholesterol Oxidation Products (COPs) in Ruminant Meat: A Biological and Pathological Approach: A Review