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Ceramide Kinase (CERK) may be a target for new anti-inflammatory drugs
Dec 4, 2005, 10:22, Reviewed by: Dr.
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�The inhibition of CERK would have the added benefit of shutting down the entire inflammatory pathway possibly alleviating side-effects caused by the medications such as Vioxx, which was recently withdrawn from the pharmaceutical market.�
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By Virginia Commonwealth University,
Virginia Commonwealth University researchers studying the enzyme that triggers inflammation have found that it may be a target for a new class of anti-inflammatory drugs to treat arthritis, asthma, multiple sclerosis, lung and colon cancers and Alzheimer�s disease.
In the December issue of the Journal of Lipid Research, researchers examined the structural make-up of ceramide which is a target molecule for the enzyme known as ceramide kinase (CERK). CERK is able to recognize ceramide based on its structure. The interaction of CERK and ceramide is like a lock and key. They found that even a slight change in the structure of ceramide can significantly decrease CERK�s ability to identify its target and catalyze the reaction.
�Our findings suggest that CERK could be a novel target for a new generation of anti-inflammatory/anti-trauma therapeutics, and lay the groundwork for a rationale design of inhibitors for CERK,� said lead author Charles E. Chalfant, Ph.D., assistant professor of biochemistry at VCU.
According to Chalfant, CERK is responsible for catalyzing the process in mammals called phosphorylation that produces a signaling lipid called ceramide-1-phosphate (C1P). C1P is an important biological mediator that induces inflammatory pathways such as those blocked by many allergy medications.
�The inhibition of CERK would have the added benefit of shutting down the entire inflammatory pathway possibly alleviating side-effects caused by the medications such as Vioxx, which was recently withdrawn from the pharmaceutical market.� 
- December issue of the Journal of Lipid Research
www.vcu.edu
This research was supported by grants from the National Institutes of Health via the National Heart, Lung, Blood Institute.
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