Statements in which the resource exists as a subject.
PredicateObject
rdf:type
lifeskim:mentions
pubmed:issue
52
pubmed:dateCreated
2000-1-13
pubmed:databankReference
pubmed:abstractText
Neutral sphingomyelinase (N-SMase) has emerged as an important cell membrane-associated enzyme that participates in several signal transduction and cell regulatory phenomena. Using expression cloning, we have identified a 3.7-kilobase pair cDNA transcript for N-SMase whose open reading frame predicts a 397-amino acid polypeptide. Transfection of COS-7 cells with cDNA for N-SMase resulted in a marked increase in N-SMase activity. Recombinant N-SMase (r-N-SMase) had the following physical-chemical properties. Mg(2+) activated and Cu(2+) and glutathione inhibited the activity of r-N-SMase. In contrast, dithiothreitol did not alter the activity of the enzyme. Of several phospholipids examined, sphingomyelin was the preferred substrate for r-N-SMase. The apparent molecular mass of r-N-SMase derived from COS-7 cells was approximately 90 kDa, similar to the native neutral sphingomyelinase prepared from human urine. However, upon expression in Escherichia coli, the apparent molecular mass of the recombinant enzyme was approximately 45 kDa. We speculate that this apparent difference in recombinant enzymes derived from COS-7 and E. coli cells may be due to extensive post-transcriptional changes. r-N-SMase has numerous post-transcriptional modification sites such as phosphorylation sites via protein kinase C, casein kinase II, tyrosine kinase, and cAMP- and cGMP-dependent protein kinases as well as sites for glycosylation and myristoylation. Amino acid sequence alignment studies revealed that r-N-SMase has some similarity to acid sphingomyelinase and significant homology to the death domains of tumor necrosis factor-alpha receptor-1 and Fas/Apo-I. We believe that the molecular cloning and characterization of N-SMase cDNA will accelerate the process to define its role as a key regulator in apoptosis, lipid and lipoprotein metabolism, and other cell regulatory pathways.
pubmed:grant
pubmed:language
eng
pubmed:journal
pubmed:citationSubset
IM
pubmed:chemical
pubmed:status
MEDLINE
pubmed:month
Dec
pubmed:issn
0021-9258
pubmed:author
pubmed:issnType
Print
pubmed:day
24
pubmed:volume
274
pubmed:owner
NLM
pubmed:authorsComplete
Y
pubmed:pagination
37407-12
pubmed:dateRevised
2007-11-14
pubmed:meshHeading
pubmed:year
1999
pubmed:articleTitle
Molecular cloning, characterization, and expression of a novel human neutral sphingomyelinase.
pubmed:affiliation
Department of Pediatrics, Johns Hopkins Hospital, Baltimore, Maryland 21287-3654, USA. chatter@welchlink.welch.jhu.edu
pubmed:publicationType
Journal Article, Research Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S.