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. 2013 Jun 4:4:67.
doi: 10.3389/fendo.2013.00067. eCollection 2013.

Sphingolipid metabolism and obesity-induced inflammation

Se-Chan Kang  1 , Bo-Rahm Kim, Su-Yeon Lee, Tae-Sik Park
Affiliations

Sphingolipid metabolism and obesity-induced inflammation

Se-Chan Kang et al. Front Endocrinol (Lausanne). .

Abstract

Obesity is a metabolic disorder developed by overnutrition and a major cause for insulin resistance and cardiovascular events. Since adipose tissue is one of the major sites for the synthesis and secretion of cytokines, enlarged adipose tissue in obese condition alters inflammatory state leading to pathophysiological conditions such as type 2 diabetes and increased cardiovascular risk. A plausible theory for development of metabolic dysregulation is that obesity increases secretion of inflammatory cytokines from adipose tissue and causes a chronic inflammation in the whole body. Additionally accumulation of lipids in non-adipose tissues elevates the cellular levels of bioactive lipids that inhibit the signaling pathways implicated in metabolic regulation together with activated inflammatory response. Recent findings suggest that obesity-induced inflammatory response leads to modulation of sphingolipid metabolism and these bioactive lipids may function as mediators for increased risk of metabolic dysfunction. Importantly, elucidation of mechanism regarding sphingolipid metabolism and inflammatory disease will provide crucial information to development of new therapeutic strategies for the treatment of obesity-induced pathological inflammation.

Keywords: atherosclerosis; cardiomyopathy; ceramide; diabetes; fatty liver; inflammation; obesity.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Enlarged adipocytes by obesity contribute to systemic inflammation and lipotoxicity due to increased cytokines and accumulation of lipid metabolites in non-adipocyte tissues. DAG, diacylglycerol; TAG, triacylglycerol; Cer, ceramide; Sph, sphingosine.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Sphingolipid biosynthetic pathways. Inhibition of indicated biosynthetic enzymes is associated with prevention of chronic metabolic diseases. SPT, serine palmitoyltransferase; DES1, dihydroceramide desaturase 1; SMS, sphingomyelin synthase.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Elevated ceramide and SM in obese adipocytes elicit the pathophysiological events in various tissues and organs. CVD, cardiovascular disease.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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