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Updated: Jul 19, 2026

A Pipeline to Investigate the Structures and Signaling Pathways of Sphingosine 1-Phosphate Receptors
Published on: June 8, 2022
Intracellular trafficking of sphingolipids: relationship to biosynthesis
1Department of Biological Chemistry, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 76100, Israel. tony.futerman@weizmann.ac.il
Abstract:
The intracellular routes of sphingolipid trafficking are related to the compartmentalized nature of sphingolipid metabolism, with synthesis beginning in the endoplasmic reticulum, continuing in the Golgi apparatus, and degradation occurring mainly in lysosomes. Whereas bulk sphingolipid transport between subcellular organelles occurs primarily via vesicle-mediated pathways, evidence is accumulating that sphingolipids are found in subcellular organelles that are not connected to each other by vesicular flow, implying additional trafficking routes. After discussing how sphingolipids are transported through the secretory pathway, I will review evidence for sphingolipid metabolism in organelles such as the mitochondria, and then discuss how this impacts upon our current understanding of the regulation of intracellular sphingolipid transport.
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