Studies employing human fetal intestine have yielded remarkable information on the role of polarized enterocytes in fat absorption. In this report, we investigated the intestinal expression, spatiotemporal distributions, ontogeny and function of the scavenger receptor, Class B, Type I (SR-BI) that plays a crucial role in cholesterol homeostasis. SR-BI was detected as early as week 14 of gestation in all gut segments and was almost entirely confined to the absorptive epithelial cells. By using immunofluorescence staining, the distribution of SR-BI rarely appeared as a gradient, increasing from the developing crypt to the tip of the villus. Western blot showed high levels of immunodetectable SR-BI in the duodenum, which progressively decreased toward the distal colon. The high-resolution immunogold technique revealed labelling mainly over microvilli of the enterocyte. SR-BI was not associated with caveolin-1 and was not detectable in caveolae. In order to define the role of SR-BI in intestinal cholesterol absorption, Caco-2 cells were transfected with a constitutive expression vector (pZeoSV) containing human SR-BI cDNA inserted in an antisense orientation. As noted by immunoblotting and Protein A-gold techniques, stable transformants contained 40, 60 and 80% the SR-BI level of control Caco-2 cells and exhibited a proportional drop in free cholesterol uptake without altering the capture of phospholipids or cholesteryl ester. Confirmation of these data was obtained in intestinal organ culture where SR-BI antibodies lowered cholesterol uptake. These observations suggest that the human intestine possesses a developmental and regional SR-BI pattern of distribution, and extends our knowledge in SR-BI-mediated cholesterol transport.