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Live Imaging Assay for Assessing the Roles of Ca2+ and Sphingomyelinase in the Repair of Pore-forming Toxin Wounds
Published on: August 25, 2013
Sphingomyelin-degrading pathways in human cells role in cell signalling
T Levade1, N Andrieu-Abadie, B Ségui
1INSERM U. 466, Laboratoire de Biochimie, Maladies Métaboliques, Institut Louis Bugnard, CHU Rangueil, Toulouse, France. levade@rangueil.inserm.fr
Abstract:
The ubiquitous sphingophospholipid sphingomyelin (SM) can be hydrolysed in human cells to ceramide by different sphingomyelinases (SMases). These enzymes exert a dual role, enabling not only the turnover of membrane SM and the degradation of exogenous (lipoprotein) SM, but also the signal-induced generation of the lipid second messenger ceramide. This review focuses on the function(s) of the different SMases in living cells. While both lysosomal and non-lysosomal pathways that ensure SM hydrolysis in intact cells can be distinguished, the precise contribution of each of these SM-cleaving enzymes to the production of ceramide as a signalling molecule remains to be clarified.
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