The pandemic of lipid-related disease necessitates a determination of how cholesterol and other lipids are transported and stored within cells. The first step in this determination is the identification of the genes involved in these transport and storage processes. Using genome-wide screens, we identified 56 yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae) genes involved in sterol-lipid biosynthesis, intracellular trafficking, and/or neutral-lipid storage. Direct biochemical and cytological examination of mutant cells revealed an unanticipated link between secretory protein glycosylation and triacylglycerol (TAG)/steryl ester (SE) synthesis for the storage of lipids. Together with the analysis of other deletion mutants, these results suggested at least two distinct events for the biogenesis of lipid storage particles: a step affecting neutral-lipid synthesis, generating the lipid core of storage particles, and another step for particle assembly. In addition to the lipid storage mutants, we identified mutations that affect the localization of unesterified sterols, which are normally concentrated in the plasma membrane. These findings implicated phospholipase C and the protein phosphatase Ptc1p in the regulation of sterol distribution within cells. This study identified novel sterol-related genes that define several distinct processes maintaining sterol homeostasis.Both cholesterol biosynthesis and storage are controlled in response to levels and localization of regulatory pools of sterols (33,37,54,65). In response to high cholesterol levels in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) membrane, the enzyme acyl coenzyme A (CoA):sterol O-acyltransferase (ASAT) initiates sterol esterification and storage by covalently coupling fatty acids to cholesterol. Through an active process, the esterified cholesterol is amalgamated with other neutral lipids into lipid storage droplets that are released from the ER membrane (42, 88). The trafficking of unesterified sterols also affects the sterol distribution in regulatory pools. Although cholesterol is synthesized in the ER, the highest level of unesterified cholesterol is found in the plasma membrane (33) and maintenance of normal sterol levels requires the efficient transport of cholesterol from the ER membrane to the plasma membrane. The maintenance of cholesterol levels in the plasma membrane is affected by sorting from endosomal compartments and recycling back to the cell surface (33, 54), and feedback regulation of cholesterol on its own biosynthesis and storage also controls levels of cellular sterols (16, 68). These findings suggest that the maintenance of cellular cholesterol homeostasis requires the regulatory integration of cholesterol synthesis, storage, and transport pathways.As in mammalian cells, the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae synthesizes its own cholesterol-like lipids but, under normal aerobic conditions, yeast does not internalize exogenous sterol lipids. Apart from this difference, other elements of sterol homeostasis, including lipid storage and transport pathways, app...