sphingomyelin

[ sfing-goh-mahy-uh-lin ]

noun

, Biochemistry.

1. any of the class of phospholipids occurring chiefly in the brain and spinal cord, composed of phosphoric acid, choline, sphingosine, and a fatty acid.

sphingomyelin

/ ˌsfɪŋɡəʊˈmaɪəlɪn /

noun

1. biochem any of a group of phospholipids, derived from sphingosine, that occur in biological membranes, being especially abundant in the brain

Word History and Origins

Origin of sphingomyelin¹

< New Latin sphingo-, combining form representing Greek sphíngein to draw tight + myelin

Word History and Origins

Origin of sphingomyelin¹

from sphingo-, from Greek sphingein to bind + myelin

Example Sentences

Plasmodium falciparum phospholipase C hydrolyzing sphingomyelin and lysocholinephospholipids is a possible target for malaria chemotherapy.

From Nature

The researchers then looked more closely at the metabolites and recognized that the ones that were changing the most were associated with the metabolic pathway that synthesizes and breaks down the phospholipid sphingomyelin, a component of cell membranes, and its ceramide precursors.

From Scientific American

At that point, the level of a phospholipid known as lecithin usually rises sharply and surpasses the level of another lipid, sphingomyelin.

From Time Magazine Archive