虾自身不能合成固醇，为了正常的生长发育，需要从食物中获取这种营养素。对甲壳纲动物（包括虾）来说，胆固醇是维生素D、甾类激素和蜕皮激素（ecdysteron）的前体。日本鹿儿岛大学渔业系的金泽博士和手岛博士提出，虾在幼虫期（larvalstage）和幼稚期（juvenilestage）都需要 Shrimp itself can not synthesize sterols, in order to normal growth and development, need to get this nutrient from food. Cholesterol is a precursor of vitamin D, steroid hormones and ecdysteron to crustaceans, including shrimp. Dr. Kanazawa and Dr. Shimadzu, Department of Fisheries, Kagoshima University, Japan, suggested that shrimp are required at larvalstage and juvenilestage