A, cell surface expression of rat SR-BI and its cysteine mutants or rat SR-BI with introduced cysteines. CHO cells were transiently transfected with empty vector (Mock), V5-tagged rat SR-BI, or the indicated mutants. The cells were then incubated with a primary polyclonal SR-BI (ECD) antibody on ice for 30 min. After washing with PBS, cells were incubated with Alexa Fluoro®488-conjugated anti-rabbit IgG for 30 min on ice. Cell surface expression of each construct was estimated by flow cytometry. The results are the Mean ± SE of three independent experiments. B, representative results showing expression of wild-type rat SR-BI or its various cysteine mutants as indicated. The number of cells was estimated by flow cytometry.