Current Issue

Research progress on sphingolipid metabolic remodeling and targeted therapy in acute myeloid leukemia

WU Quan, ZENG Hui^*

Department of Hematology, Guangdong Provincial People's Hospital (Guangdong Academy of Medical Sciences), Southern Medical University, Guangzhou 510080, China

Abstract

Sphingolipids are a class of bioactive lipids that serve as both structural components of cellular membranes and key regulators of signal transduction. Their metabolic derivatives, including ceramide (Cer), sphingosine (Sph), and sphingosine-1-phosphate (S1P), play important regulatory roles in diverse biological processes, such as cell proliferation, apoptosis, autophagy, and stress responses. In selected acute myeloid leukemia (AML) models, sphingolipid metabolic remodeling characterized by disrupted Cer homeostasis has been observed and is closely associated with AML cell survival, therapeutic resistance, and disease relapse. In this review, we focus on the key processes involved in sphingolipid metabolic remodeling in AML, discuss their roles in sustaining AML cell survival and mediating drug resistance, and summarize potential therapeutic strategies targeting critical nodes of sphingolipid metabolism.

Key words: acute myeloid leukemia; sphingolipid metabolism; ceramide; sphingosine-1-phosphate; therapeutic resistance

Received: 　　Accepted:

Corresponding author: 曾辉　　E-mail:

DOI: 10.13294/j.aps.2026.0085

Citing This Article：

WU Quan, ZENG Hui. Research progress on sphingolipid metabolic remodeling and targeted therapy in acute myeloid leukemia. Acta Physiol Sin 2026; 78 (4): 803-814 (in Chinese with English abstract).