Abstract

It has become increasingly difficult to find an area of cell biology in which lipids do not have important, if not key, roles as signalling and regulatory molecules. The rapidly expanding field of bioactive lipids is exemplified by many sphingolipids, such as ceramide, sphingosine, sphingosine-1-phosphate (S1P), ceramide-1-phosphate and lyso-sphingomyelin, which have roles in the regulation of cell growth, death, senescence, adhesion, migration, inflammation, angiogenesis and intracellular trafficking. Deciphering the mechanisms of these varied cell functions necessitates an understanding of the complex pathways of sphingolipid metabolism and the mechanisms that regulate lipid generation and lipid action.

Author affiliations

1. Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Medical University of South Carolina, 173 Ashley Avenue, Charleston, South Carolina 29425, USA.
   Email: hannun@musc.edu
2. Department of Medicine, Medical University of South Carolina, 173 Ashley Avenue, Charleston, South Carolina 29425, USA.
   Email: obeidl@musc.edu
3. Department of Veterans Affairs, Medical Center, Charleston, South Carolina 29401, USA.

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