Serum Sphingolipid Variations Associate with Hepatic Decompensation and Survival in Patients with Cirrhosis.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Sphingolipids constitute bioactive molecules with functional implications in liver homeostasis. Particularly, ablation of very long chain ceramides in a knockout mouse model has been shown to cause a severe hepatopathy.

Methods

We aimed to evaluate the serum sphingolipid profile of 244 patients with cirrhosis prospectively followed for a median period of 228±217 days via mass spectrometry.

Results

We thereby observed a significant decrease of long and very long chain ceramides, particularly of C24ceramide, in patients with increasing severity of cirrhosis (p<0.001). Additionally, hydropic decompensation, defined by clinical presentation of ascites formation, was significantly correlated to low C24ceramide levels (p<0.001) while a significant association to

SUBMITTER: Grammatikos G 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4575185 | biostudies-literature | 2015

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature