New Generation Lipid Test: Are Ceramides New Cholesterol?

Scott Summers from University of Utah discusses at Cell Metabolism Journal, could recently introduced ceramide testing become new cholesterol.

Zora has developed a ceramide based test for identification of patients risk of major adverse cardiac events such as myocardial infarction. The test enables preventive actions and treatment to be directed to the patients at high risk of cardiac events.  The Mayo Clinic has taken the ceramide test into their test catalog. The ceramide test can be found from their catalog with name Ceram. Summers discusses that recent studies reveal that circulating ceramide levels correlate strongly with future adverse cardiovascular events such as myocardial infarction and stroke. These studies have created a foundation for relating ceramides to diabetes and heart disease. Summers summarizes that ceramide levels are being monitored, and medical and research communities are seeking answers about the ramifications of an altered ceramide profile. More work is needed quickly on this exciting class of lipids.

Link to the original article here.