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Updated: Jul 4, 2026

Saturated Fatty Acids Induce Ceramide-associated Macrophage Cell Death
Published on: October 31, 2017
Involvement of nitric oxide in the promotion of cell survival by ceramide 1-phosphate
Patricia Gangoiti1, Maria H Granado, Lide Arana
1Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of the Basque Country, Bilbao, Spain.
Abstract:
Macrophages play vital roles in inflammatory responses, and their number at sites of inflammation is strictly regulated by cell death and division. Here, we demonstrate that production of nitric oxide (NO) is a major mechanism whereby ceramide-1-phosphate (C1P) blocks apoptosis in macrophages. However, NO failed to stimulate macrophage proliferation. The prosurvival effect of C1P was blocked by inhibitors of inducible NO synthase. The antiapoptotic effect of C1P was also blocked by phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase or nuclear factor-kappa B inhibitors. Moreover, NO reversed the inhibitory effect of C1P on acid sphingomyelinase, but the prosurvival effect of C1P was independent of this action.
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