Serum sphingolipidomic analyses reveal an upregulation of C16-ceramide and sphingosine-1-phosphate in hepatocellular carcinoma.

ABSTRACT: We have recently shown that major alterations of serum sphingolipid metabolites in chronic liver disease associate significantly with the stage of liver fibrosis in corresponding patients. In the current study we assessed via mass spectrometry serum concentrations of sphingolipid metabolites in a series of 122 patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) compared to an age- and sex-matched series of 127 patients with cirrhosis. We observed a highly significant upregulation of long and very long chain ceramides (C16-C24) in the serum of patients with HCC as compared to patients with cirrhosis (P < 0.001). Accordingly, dihydro-ceramides, synthetic precursors of ceramides and notably sphingosine, sphingosine-1-phosphate (S1P) and sphinganine-1-phosphate (SA1P) were upregulated in patients wit

SUBMITTER: Grammatikos G 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4951274 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature