title: Ceramide synthases in biomedical research.
abstract: Sphingolipid metabolism consists of multiple metabolic pathways that converge upon ceramide, one of the key molecules among sphingolipids (SLs). In mammals, ceramide synthesis occurs via N-acylation of sphingoid backbones, dihydrosphingosine (dhSo) or sphingosine (So). The reaction is catalyzed by ceramide synthases (CerS), a family of enzymes with six different isoforms, with each one showing specificity towards a restricted group of acyl-CoAs, thus producing ceramides (Cer) and dihydroceramides (dhCer) with different fatty acid chain lengths. A large body of evidence documents the role of both So and dhSo as bioactive molecules, as well as the involvement of dhCer and Cer in physiological and pathological processes. In particular, the fatty acid composition of Cer has different effects in cell biology and in the onset and progression of different diseases. Therefore, modulation of CerS activity represents an attractive target in biomedical research and in finding new treatment modalities. In this review, we discuss functional, structural and biochemical features of CerS and examine CerS inhibitors that are currently available.
authors.affiliation: Research Unit on BioActive Molecules (RUBAM), Department of Biomedicinal Chemistry, Institute for Advanced Chemistry of Catalonia (IQAC-CSIC), Jordi Girona 18, 08034 Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: Francesca
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Cingolani
authors.affiliation: Department of Biological Chemistry, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 76100, Israel.
authors.forename: Anthony H
authors.initials: AH
authors.lastname: Futerman
authors.affiliation: Research Unit on BioActive Molecules (RUBAM), Department of Biomedicinal Chemistry, Institute for Advanced Chemistry of Catalonia (IQAC-CSIC), Jordi Girona 18, 08034 Barcelona, Spain. Electronic address: fina.casas@iqac.csic.es.
authors.forename: Josefina
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Casas
mesh_terms: D035843:Biomedical Research; D010088:Oxidoreductases / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism*; D011487:Protein Conformation; D013347:Subcellular Fractions / Q000201:enzymology / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D010088:Oxidoreductases; C108138:dihydroceramide desaturase
keywords: Dihydroceramides; Inhibitors; Metabolism; Sphingolipid