1. CERT1 mutations perturb human development by disrupting sphingolipid homeostasis.
- Author
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Gehin C, Lone MA, Lee W, Capolupo L, Ho S, Adeyemi AM, Gerkes EH, Stegmann AP, López-Martín E, Bermejo-Sánchez E, Martínez-Delgado B, Zweier C, Kraus C, Popp B, Strehlow V, Gräfe D, Knerr I, Jones ER, Zamuner S, Abriata LA, Kunnathully V, Moeller BE, Vocat A, Rommelaere S, Bocquete JP, Ruchti E, Limoni G, Van Campenhoudt M, Bourgeat S, Henklein P, Gilissen C, van Bon BW, Pfundt R, Willemsen MH, Schieving JH, Leonardi E, Soli F, Murgia A, Guo H, Zhang Q, Xia K, Fagerberg CR, Beier CP, Larsen MJ, Valenzuela I, Fernández-Álvarez P, Xiong S, Śmigiel R, López-González V, Armengol L, Morleo M, Selicorni A, Torella A, Blyth M, Cooper NS, Wilson V, Oegema R, Herenger Y, Garde A, Bruel AL, Tran Mau-Them F, Maddocks AB, Bain JM, Bhat MA, Costain G, Kannu P, Marwaha A, Champaigne NL, Friez MJ, Richardson EB, Gowda VK, Srinivasan VM, Gupta Y, Lim TY, Sanna-Cherchi S, Lemaitre B, Yamaji T, Hanada K, Burke JE, Jakšić AM, McCabe BD, De Los Rios P, Hornemann T, D'Angelo G, and Gennarino VA
- Subjects
- Humans, Homeostasis, Mutation, Ceramides metabolism, Sphingolipids genetics, Sphingolipids metabolism
- Abstract
Neural differentiation, synaptic transmission, and action potential propagation depend on membrane sphingolipids, whose metabolism is tightly regulated. Mutations in the ceramide transporter CERT (CERT1), which is involved in sphingolipid biosynthesis, are associated with intellectual disability, but the pathogenic mechanism remains obscure. Here, we characterize 31 individuals with de novo missense variants in CERT1. Several variants fall into a previously uncharacterized dimeric helical domain that enables CERT homeostatic inactivation, without which sphingolipid production goes unchecked. The clinical severity reflects the degree to which CERT autoregulation is disrupted, and inhibiting CERT pharmacologically corrects morphological and motor abnormalities in a Drosophila model of the disease, which we call ceramide transporter (CerTra) syndrome. These findings uncover a central role for CERT autoregulation in the control of sphingolipid biosynthetic flux, provide unexpected insight into the structural organization of CERT, and suggest a possible therapeutic approach for patients with CerTra syndrome.
- Published
- 2023
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