Ceramidase


Ceramidase is an enzyme which cleaves fatty acids from ceramide, producing sphingosine which in turn is phosphorylated by a sphingosine kinase to form sphingosine-1-phosphate.

Function

Ceramide, SPH, and S1P are bioactive lipids that mediate cell proliferation, differentiation, apoptosis, adhesion, and migration. Presently, 7 human ceramidases encoded by 7 distinct genes have been cloned:
A deficiency in ASAH1 is associated with Farber disease.