title: Inhibitors of dihydroceramide desaturase 1: Therapeutic agents and pharmacological tools to decipher the role of dihydroceramides in cell biology.
abstract: Dihydroceramide desaturase (Des1) is the last enzyme in the de novo synthesis of ceramides (Cer). It catalyzes the insertion of a double bond into dihydroceramides (dhCer) to convert them to Cer, both of which are further metabolized to more complex (dihydro) sphingolipids. For many years dhCer have received poor attention, mainly due to their supposed lack of biological activity. It was not until about ten years ago that the concept that dhCer might have regulatory roles in biology emerged for the first time. Since then, multiple publications have established that dhCer are implicated in a wide spectrum of biological processes. Physiological and pathophysiological functions of dhCer have been recently reviewed. In this review we will focus on the biochemical features of Des1 and on its inhibition by different compounds with presumably different modes of action.
authors.affiliation: Research Unit on BioActive Molecules, Department of Biomedicinal Chemistry, Institute for Advanced Chemistry of Catalonia (IQAC-CSIC), Jordi Girona 18-26, E-08034 Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: Mireia
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Casasampere
authors.affiliation: Research Unit on BioActive Molecules, Department of Biomedicinal Chemistry, Institute for Advanced Chemistry of Catalonia (IQAC-CSIC), Jordi Girona 18-26, E-08034 Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: Yadira F
authors.initials: YF
authors.lastname: Ordoñez
authors.affiliation: Research Unit on BioActive Molecules, Department of Biomedicinal Chemistry, Institute for Advanced Chemistry of Catalonia (IQAC-CSIC), Jordi Girona 18-26, E-08034 Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: Ana
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Pou
authors.affiliation: Research Unit on BioActive Molecules, Department of Biomedicinal Chemistry, Institute for Advanced Chemistry of Catalonia (IQAC-CSIC), Jordi Girona 18-26, E-08034 Barcelona, Spain. Electronic address: fina.casas@iqac.csic.es.
authors.forename: Josefina
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Casas
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002518:Ceramides / Q000378:metabolism*; D004791:Enzyme Inhibitors / Q000494:pharmacology*; D006801:Humans; D010088:Oxidoreductases / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors*
chemical_list: D002518:Ceramides; D004791:Enzyme Inhibitors; C109343:dihydroceramide; D010088:Oxidoreductases; C108138:dihydroceramide desaturase
keywords: Autophagy; Ceramides; Fenretinide; Resveratrol