C. Kenneth and Dianne Wright Center for Clinical and Translational Research, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA, USA.
Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA, USA.
Adv Exp Med Biol. 2022;1372:15-29. doi: 10.1007/978-981-19-0394-6_2.
Obesity research has shifted in recent years to address not only the total amount of adipose tissue present in an individual but also to include adipose tissue functions such as endocrine function and thermogenesis. Data suggest that sphingolipids are critical regulators of metabolic homeostasis, and that disruption of their levels is associated with metabolic disease. Abundant data from mouse models has revealed both beneficial and deleterious roles for sphingolipids in adipose function, and numerous human studies have shown that obesity alters circulating sphingolipid profiles. Sphingolipids comprise a large family of interrelated metabolites, and pinpointing specific functions for specific lipids will be required to fully exploit the therapeutic potential of targeting sphingolipids to treat obesity and related disorders.
近年来，肥胖症研究的重点不仅已从个体体内脂肪组织的总量转移到包括脂肪组织功能（如内分泌功能和产热），还转移到了包括脂肪组织功能。有数据表明，神经鞘脂类是代谢稳态的关键调节剂，其水平的破坏与代谢疾病有关。大量来自小鼠模型的研究揭示了神经鞘脂类在脂肪功能中的有益和有害作用，许多人类研究表明肥胖会改变循环神经鞘脂谱。神经鞘脂类是一大类相互关联的代谢物，为了充分利用靶向神经鞘脂类治疗肥胖症和相关疾病的治疗潜力，需要确定特定脂质的特定功能。
