Ceramide kinase is required for a normal eicosanoid response and the subsequent orderly migration of fibroblasts

In these studies, the role of ceramide-1-phosphate (C1P) in the wound-healing process was investigated. Specifically, fibroblasts isolated from mice with the known anabolic enzyme for C1P, ceramide kinase (CERK), ablated (CERK(−/−) mice) and their wild-type littermates (CERK(+/+)) were subjected to in vitro wound-healing assays. Simulation of mechanical trauma of a wound by scratching a monolayer of fibroblasts from CERK(+/+) mice demonstrated steadily increasing levels of arachidonic acid in a time-dependent manner in stark contrast to CERK(−/−) fibroblasts. This observed difference was reflected in scratch-induced eicosanoid levels. Similar, but somewhat less intense, changes were observed in a more complex system utilizing skin biopsies obtained from CERK-null mice. Importantly, C1P levels increased during the early stages of human wound healing correlating with the transition from the inflammatory stage to the peak of the fibroplasia stage (e.g., proliferation and migration of fibroblasts). Finally, the loss of proper eicosanoid response translated into an abnormal migration pattern for the fibroblasts isolated from CERK(−/−). As the proper migration of fibroblasts is one of the necessary steps of wound healing, these studies demonstrate a novel requirement for the CERK-derived C1P in the proper healing response of wounds.