Sphingomyelin
lipidSphingomyelin alters LDL aggregation susceptibility and membrane integrity, contributing to lipid retention and oxidative modification in the atherosclerotic lesion.
Pathway placement
Cascade stepLipid retention & oxidation
Confidencemedium
RationaleMembrane lipid in LDL aggregation; oxidative susceptibility in atherogenesis.
Also acts inVascular inflammation
Druggability
Not assessed (no mapped human gene target).
Type I vs Type II discrimination
ScoresLow-confidence (proxy)
R — rupture / Type-I54
C — confounder / Type-II82
A — assay feasibility40
E — evidence strength31
T1DI (composite)4
Specificity differential (R−C)-27.4
Confounder panel (Type-II drivers)
No confounder evidence retrieved.
Tier: light (literature co-occurrence proxy — lower confidence). See the discrimination table for all markers.
Assay & specimen
Class-level default (no specific cleared assay)— generic method inferred from analyte class; confirm against a specific product insert before use.
Specimen
Serum or plasma (EDTA to limit oxidation)
Collection tube
K2/K3-EDTA (lavender-top) · Serum separator (gold/red-top, SST)
Method / principle
LC-MS/MS lipidomics (targeted or shotgun)
Reagent / substrate
Deuterated lipid-class internal standards; MS/MS transitions
Platform
LC-MS/MS
Turnaround · availability
Research · Research-only
Literature evidence(17)
- Multi-omics data integration from patients with carotid stenosis illuminates key molecular signatures of atherosclerotic instability.Genome medicine · 2026 · PMID 41652626 · doi
- Bioactive lipids in plasma and atherogenic apoB-containing lipoproteins: Effects of statins and PCSK9 inhibitors and relevance to residual cardiovascular risk.Pharmacology & therapeutics · 2026 · PMID 42162924 · doi
- Changes to the serum lipidome and their relation to coronary plaque in the first six months after acute myocardial infarction.Atherosclerosis · 2025 · PMID 40651072 · doi
- Lipidomic Signature of Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm and Peripheral Artery Disease.Journal of proteome research · 2025 · PMID 40910695 · doi
- Investigating Genetic Overlap between Alzheimer's Disease, Lipids, and Coronary Artery Disease: A Large-Scale Genome-Wide Cross Trait Analysis.International journal of molecular sciences · 2024 · PMID 39201500 · doi
- Longitudinal lipidomic signature of carotid atherosclerosis in American Indians: Findings from the Strong Heart Family Study.Atherosclerosis · 2023 · PMID 37722315 · doi
- Ambient Air Pollution and Atherosclerosis: A Potential Mediating Role of Sphingolipids.Arteriosclerosis, thrombosis, and vascular biology · 2022 · PMID 35652334 · doi
- Sphingolipids in Atherosclerosis: Chimeras in Structure and Function.International journal of molecular sciences · 2022 · PMID 36233252 · doi
- The human liver lipidome is significantly related to the lipid composition and aggregation susceptibility of low-density lipoprotein (LDL) particles.Atherosclerosis · 2022 · PMID 36455305 · doi
- Biophysical and Lipidomic Biomarkers of Cardiac Remodeling Post-Myocardial Infarction in Humans.Biomolecules · 2020 · PMID 33105904 · doi
- Race disparity in blood sphingolipidomics associated with lupus cardiovascular comorbidity.PloS one · 2019 · PMID 31747417 · doi
- Integrated metabolomics and metallomics analyses in acute coronary syndrome patients.Metallomics : integrated biometal science · 2017 · PMID 28518204 · doi
- Serum metabolites and risk of myocardial infarction and ischemic stroke: a targeted metabolomic approach in two German prospective cohorts.European journal of epidemiology · 2017 · PMID 29181692 · doi
- Systems Biology Research into Cardiovascular Disease: Contributions of Lipidomics-based Approaches to Biomarker Discovery.Current drug discovery technologies · 2015 · PMID 26135855 · doi
- Lipidomic analysis of plasma lipoprotein fractions in myocardial infarction-prone rabbits.Journal of bioscience and bioengineering · 2015 · PMID 26162515 · doi
- Alteration in metabolic signature and lipid metabolism in patients with angina pectoris and myocardial infarction.PloS one · 2015 · PMID 26258408 · doi
- [Sphingolipids, possible biomarkers for atherosclerotic disorders].Rinsho byori. The Japanese journal of clinical pathology · 2013 · PMID 24369591