The identification of caveolin-1 (CAV1) as the main structural component of caveolae, together with the finding that CAV1 might serve as a molecular organizer for membrane multiprotein complexes involved in cellular traffic, endo-and transcytosis, cell adhesion and signal transduction prompted a new impulse in the research on these intracellular organells. One of the properties of CAV1 was its insolubility in cold non-ionic detergents together with apical markers in epithelial cell. Also, cholesterol is essential for caveolae formation and maintenance, and caveolae structure is highly sensitive to cholesterol depletion or treatment with cholesterol binding drugs. CAV1 tightly and specifically binds free cholesterol and artificial cholesterol containing vesicles.Synonyms: CAV1