Sterols from two marine sedimentary annelids

• 1.1. The sterol mixtures of two marine sedentary annelids, Chaetopterus variopedatus and Spirographis spallanzani (Phylum Annelida, class Polychaeta) were fractionated by argentation chromatography and were analyzed by combined gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, capillary GLC and coinjection with standards.
• 2.2. C. variopedatus and S. spallanzani contain Δ⁵-sterols and cholesterol is the major component of the sterol mixtures. In addition to the Δ⁵-sterols C. variopedatus also contains five ring saturated sterols, cholestanol being the principal stanol present.