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Publication

Ceramide is a cardiotoxin in lipotoxic cardiomyopathy.

Authors Park TS, Hu Y, Noh HL, Drosatos K, Okajima K, Buchanan J, Tuinei J, Homma S, Jiang XC, Abel ED, Goldberg IJ Submitted By Ira Goldberg on 3/4/2015 Status Published Journal Journal of lipid research Year 2008 Date Published 10/1/2008 Volume : Pages 49 : 2101 - 2112 PubMed Reference 18515784 Abstract Ceramide is among a number of potential lipotoxic molecules that are thought to modulate cellular energy metabolism. The heart is one of the tissues thought to become dysfunctional due to excess lipid accumulation. Dilated lipotoxic cardiomyopathy, thought to be the result of diabetes and severe obesity, has been modeled in several genetically altered mice, including animals with cardiac-specific overexpression of glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI)-anchored human lipoprotein lipase (LpL(GPI)). To test whether excess ceramide was implicated in cardiac lipotoxicity, de novo ceramide biosynthesis was inhibited pharmacologically by myriocin and genetically by heterozygous deletion of LCB1, a subunit of serine palmitoyltransferase (SPT). Inhibition of SPT, a rate-limiting enzyme in ceramide biosynthesis, reduced fatty acid and increased glucose oxidation in isolated perfused LpL(GPI) hearts, improved systolic function, and prolonged survival rates. Our results suggest a critical role for ceramide accumulation in the pathogenesis of lipotoxic cardiomyopathy.

Investigators with authorship
Name Institution E. Dale Abel University of Iowa Ira Goldberg New York University School of Medicine

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