This book attempts to analyze the latest discoveries in sphingolipid biology and how the alteration of their metabolism leads to altered signaling events and to the development of pathobiological disorders, such as cancer, cardiovascular diseases, asthma, diabetes, inflammation and infectious diseases.

Current thinking holds that obesity derives primarily from overnutrition (though compelling arguments for other mechanisms, like endocrine disruption by environmental pollutants, also gain support from the literature). In animals, overnutrition is initially handled by adipose tissue expansion; however, exhaustion of this route of lipid sequestering results in oversupply of lipid to other tissues including skeletal muscle, heart, liver, and others. Failure of these tissues to clear excess lipids through either metabolism or sequestration into putatively inert triacylglycerols results in perturbation of bioactive lipid metabolism in cells. In particular, aberrant generation of bioactive sphingolipids is implicated in a multitude of pathological outcomes of metabolic disease including insulin resistance, inflammation, cardiomyopathy, and others. This volume addresses not only the fundamentals of sphingolipid metabolism and analysis, but also the roles of sphingolipids in these disease processes.

Sphingolipids in Cancer, Volume 140, the latest release in the Advances in Cancer Research series, provides invaluable information on the exciting and fast-moving field of cancer research. Topics discussed in this updated volume include Mechanisms of ceramide-dependent cancer cell death, Sphingolipids as regulators of autophagy and endocytic trafficking, The role and function of sphingomyelin biosynthesis in the development of cancer, Neutral sphingomyelinases in cancer: Friend or foe?, Sphingolipid rendezvous at the crossroad of NAFLD and senescence, Ceramide signaling and p53 pathways, Sphingolipid regulation of RNA Biology in cancer phenotypes, The role of ceramide-1-phosphate in tumor cell survival and dissemination, and more. - Provides information on cancer research, with this release focusing on sphingolipids - Offers outstanding and original reviews on a range of cancer research topics - Serves as an indispensable reference for researchers and students alike

Sphingolipids are lipid components of the plasma membrane of eukaryotic cells with an important function in signaling mechanisms in the cell. This book provides insight into the physiological and pathophysiological role of sphingolipids and in particular its derivative ceramide. The function of Sphingolipids in cell signaling with regard to infectious and lung diseases, cancer, cardiovascular diseases and neuropsychiatric disorders are described and treated in distinct parts. Together with Volume 215 from the same Editors, the collection represents a unique, comprehensive work on Sphingolipids, providing information on both: Sphingolipid basic biology as well as its important function in a (patho)physiological context. The book is written for scientists in pharmacology, biochemistry and cell biology with a focus on biomedical research as well as for clinicians in pharmacology, oncology, cardiology, neurology and infectious disease. ​

Sphingolipids are lipid components of the plasma membrane in eukaryotic cells. They have an important function in signaling mechanisms in the cell. This book on sphingolipids provides insights into the basics of sphingolipid biology and drug development, with a particular emphasis on the sphingolipid derivative ceramide. In the first part basic functions of sphingolipids are described, as well as the genetics of important enzymes, sphingolipid metabolism and synthesis. The second part of this first volume focuses on drug development and pharmacology. The book is intended for scientists in pharmacology, biochemistry and cell biology with a focus on biomedical research as well as for clinicians working in pharmacology, oncology, cardiology, neurology and infectious disease. Together with Volume 216 by the same editors, the collection represents a unique, comprehensive work on sphingolipids, providing information on both sphingolipids’ basic biology (including synthesis, metabolism and cell biology) and their important function in a (patho-)physiological context.

This volume presents information on both the basic and clinical aspects of sphingolipid-metabolizing enzymes in various cancers. The volume also includes discussions of the innovative techniques and approaches for quantitative analysis and imaging that could significantly impact the general understanding of this topic, and the potential benefit of targeting sphingolipid enzymes to develop novel cancer therapeutics. As well, the volume includes a critical examination of the specific pathways and pathobiologies associated with the altered regulation of sphingolipid metabolism as a contributor to the development and/or maintenance of pathological conditions such as cancer.

Although sphingolipids are ubiquitous components of cellular membranes, their abundance in cells is generally lower than glycerolipids or cholesterol, representing less than 20% of total lipid mass. Following their discovery in the brain—which contains the largest amounts of sphingolipids in the body—and first description in 1884 by J.L.W. Thudichum, sphingolipids have been overlooked for almost a century, perhaps due to their complexity and enigmatic nature. When sphingolipidoses were discovered, a series of inherited diseases caused by enzyme mutations involved in sphingolipid degradation returned to the limelight. The essential breakthrough came decades later, in the 1990s, with the discovery that sphingolipids were not just structural elements of cellular membranes but intra- and extracellular signaling molecules. It turned out that their lipid backbones, including ceramide and sphingosine-1-phosphate, had selective physiological functions. Thus, sphingolipids emerged as essential players in several pathologies including cancer, diabetes, neurodegenerative disorders, and autoimmune diseases. The present volume reflects upon the unexpectedly eclectic functions of sphingolipids in health, disease, and therapy. This fascinating lipid class will continue to be the subject of up-and-coming future discoveries, especially with regard to new therapeutic strategies.