Identification of Mg2+ -dependent neutral sphingomyelinase 1 as a mediator of heat stress-induced ceramide generation and apoptosis.

Neutral sphingomyelinases (SMases) are involved in the induction of ceramide-mediated proapoptotic signaling under heat stress conditions. Although ceramide is an important mediator of apoptosis, the neutral SMase that is activated under heat stress has not been identified. In this study, we cloned an Mg(2+)-dependent neutral SMase from a zebrafish embryonic cell cDNA library using an Escherichia coli expression-cloning vector. Screening of the clones using an SMase activity assay with C(6)-7-nitro-2-1,3-benzoxadiazol-4-yl-sphingomyelin as the substrate resulted in the isolation of one neutral SMase cDNA clone. This cDNA encoded a polypeptide of 420 amino acids (putative molecular weight: 46,900) containing two predicted transmembrane domains in its C-terminal region. The cloned neutral SMase 1 acted as a mediator of stress-induced apoptosis. Bacterially expressed recombinant neutral SMase 1 hydrolyzed [choline-methyl-(14)C]sphingomyelin optimally at pH 7.5 in the presence of an Mg(2+) ion. In zebrafish embryonic cells, the endogenous SMase enzyme was localized in the microsomal fraction. In FLAG-tagged SMase-overexpressing cells, neutral SMase 1 colocalized with a Golgi marker in a cytochemical analysis. Inactivation of the enzyme by an antisense phosphorothioate oligonucleotide repressed the induction of ceramide generation, caspase-3 activation, and apoptotic cell death by heat stress. Thus, neutral SMase 1 participates in an inducible ceramide-mediating, proapoptotic signaling pathway that operates in heat-induced apoptosis in zebrafish embryonic cells.