Figure 1From: Sphingolipids: the nexus between Gaucher disease and insulin resistanceGeneral chemical structure of sphingolipids. The long chain sphingosine base, generally of 18 carbons, is linked through an amide bond to a fatty acid. R = H is ceramide, the simplest sphingolipid; R = phosphocholine is sphingomyelin and R = sugars produces the glycosphingolipids including gangliosides.Back to article page