Recombinant Human Neutral ceramidase (ASAH2), partial

Function

Plasma membrane ceramidase that hydrolyzes sphingolipid ceramides into sphingosine and free fatty acids at neutral pH (PubMed:10781606, PubMed:16229686, PubMed:26190575). Ceramides, sphingosine, and its phosphorylated form sphingosine-1-phosphate are bioactive lipids that mediate cellular signaling pathways regulating several biological processes including cell proliferation, apoptosis and differentiation (PubMed:15946935, PubMed:19345744, PubMed:24798654). Also catalyzes the reverse reaction allowing the synthesis of ceramides from fatty acids and sphingosine (PubMed:11278489, PubMed:17475390). Together with sphingomyelinase, participates in the production of sphingosine and sphingosine-1-phosphate from the degradation of sphingomyelin, a sphingolipid enriched in the plasma membrane of cells (PubMed:16061940). Also participates in the hydrolysis of ceramides from the extracellular milieu allowing the production of sphingosine-1-phosphate inside and outside cells (By similarity). This is the case for instance with the digestion of dietary sphingolipids in the intestinal tract (By similarity)

Subcellular Location

Secreted

Tissue Specificity

Primarily expressed in intestine (PubMed:17334805). Ubiquitously expressed with higher levels in kidney, skeletal muscle and heart (PubMed:10781606). The ubiquitous expression observed for ASAH2 might be an experimental artifact due to the paralog ASAH2B (PubMed:17334805)

Pathway

Lipid metabolism; sphingolipid metabolism

• Choi M.S. et al. Neutral ceramidase gene: role in regulating ceramide-induced apoptosis. — Gene (2003)
• Osawa Y. et al. Roles for C16-ceramide and sphingosine 1-phosphate in regulating hepatocyte apoptosis in response to tumor necrosis factor-alpha. — J. Biol. Chem. (2005)
• Deloukas P. et al. The DNA sequence and comparative analysis of human chromosome 10. — Nature (2004)
• El Bawab S. et al. Molecular cloning and characterization of a human mitochondrial ceramidase. — J. Biol. Chem. (2000)
• El Bawab S. et al. Biochemical characterization of the reverse activity of rat brain ceramidase. A CoA-independent and fumonisin B1-insensitive ceramide synthase. — J. Biol. Chem. (2001)
• The status, quality, and expansion of the NIH full-length cDNA project: the Mammalian Gene Collection (MGC). — Genome Res. (2004)
• Hwang Y.H. et al. Subcellular localization of human neutral ceramidase expressed in HEK293 cells. — Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun. (2005)
• Tani M. et al. Mechanisms of sphingosine and sphingosine 1-phosphate generation in human platelets. — J. Lipid Res. (2005)