SMPD1

protein-coding

sphingomyelin phosphodiesterase 1

Gene summary

The protein encoded by this gene is a lysosomal acid sphingomyelinase that converts sphingomyelin to ceramide. The encoded protein also has phospholipase C activity. Defects in this gene are a cause of Niemann-Pick disease type A (NPA) and Niemann-Pick disease type B (NPB). Multiple transcript variants encoding different isoforms have been identified. [provided by RefSeq, Jul 2010]

MANE transcript

NM_000543.5

Inheritance

AR

ClinVar variants

P:430U:258B:369

Top phenotype

Niemann-Pick disease, type A; Niemann-Pick disease, type B

gnomAD constraint

pLI —, LoF o/e 0.73

Max pathogenic AF

—

Genomic locus

chr11:6,390,440-6,394,998

External References & Databases

Transcript & Mutation Effects

hg38 • Region Span ~4.6 kb
Loading mutation effect viewer...

GenCC Phenotypes & Disease Associations

Curated gene-disease validity assertions and inheritance patterns

Niemann-Pick disease type ADEFINITIVE

Inheritance Pattern: AR

Disease ID:MONDO:0009756

Submitter: G2P

acid sphingomyelinase deficiencyDEFINITIVE

Inheritance Pattern: AR

Disease ID:MONDO:0100464

Submitter: ClinGen

The relationship between SMPD1 and acid sphingomyelinase deficiency (ASMD), an autosomal recessive lysosomal storage disorder, was evaluated using the ClinGen Clinical Validity Framework as of May 18, 2022. SMPD1 encodes acid sphingomyelinase (ASM), an enzyme found in lysosomes and in the extracellular space where it catalyzes the conversion of sphingomyelin, a major component of membranes, into ceramide and phosphocholine (Gorelik et al, 2016, PMID: 27435900). Historically, biallelic variants in SMPD1 have been associated with Niemann-Pick disease types A and B. Niemann-Pick disease type A, the neurovisceral form, is characterized by hepatosplenomegaly with rapid neurological deterioration leading to death in the first few years of life. Niemann-Pick disease type B, a later-onset, chronic visceral form, is characterized by progressive visceral organ symptoms including hepatosplenomegaly and pulmonary insufficiency, and survival into adulthood. Some patients present with an intermediate phenotype, Niemann-Pick disease type A/B. Based on this clinical continuum of disease, these conditions are now described as “acid sphingomyelinase deficiency” (ASMD) (Wasserstein and Schuchman, 2021, PMID: 20301544). Indeed, per criteria outlined by the ClinGen Lumping and Splitting Working Group, we found no difference in the molecular mechanism or inheritance pattern for Niemann-Pick disease types A and B. Therefore, these disease entities have been lumped under one disease entity, acid sphingomyelinase deficiency, for this curation. Of note, variants in SMPD1 have also been reported as risk factors for Parkinson disease (Ysselstein et al, 2019, PMID 30726573; Paciotti et al, 2020, PMID: 32098196). The relationship between SMPD1 and Parkinson disease was not assessed here but may be curated at a later date. Biallelic variants in SMPD1 were first reported in patients with ASMD in 1991 (Levran et al, PMID: 2023926; Felinz et al, PMID: 1718266). Since then, over 180 disease-associated variants have been reported (Zampieri et al, 2016, PMID: 26499107). In this curation, data on 10 unique variants (5 missense, 2 nonsense, 2 frameshift, 1 inframe deletion) from 8 probands from 5 publications were collected (Levran et al, 1991, PMID: 2023926; Takahashi et al, 1992, PMID: 1618760; Pittis et al, 2004, PMID: 15241805; Desnick et al, 2010, PMID: 20386867; Ordieres-Ortega et al, 2020, PMID: 32375665). The MANE reference sequence, NM_000543.4, was used. This leads to a shift of +2 amino acids for some published variants, particularly for variants in older literature, due to an leucine-alanine dipeptide within the polymorphic signal peptide (Zampieri et al, 2016, PMID: 26499107). ASMD is a pan-ethnic condition, but is more common in individuals of Ashkenazi Jewish descent, associated with the founder variants c.996delC, p.Leu304Pro and p.Arg498Leu. The most frequently reported mutation worldwide is p.Arg610del, associated with a milder phenotype (Zampieri et al, 2016, PMID: 26499107; see Table 6 in Wasserstein and Schuchman, 2021, PMID: 20301544) ). The disease mechanism is loss of function. Further genetic evidence is available in the literature but the maximum score for genetic evidence (12 points) has been reached. Experimental evidence supporting this gene-disease relationship includes the biochemical function of the gene product of SMPD1 (acid sphingomyelinase), which is consistent with the biochemical and clinical findings in patients (Schuchman et al, 1991, PMID: 1840600; Jenkins et al, 2009, PMID: 19385042), the features of a knock out mouse model and a cat with ASM deficiency (Horinouchi et al, 1995, PMID: 7670466; Takaichi et al, 2020, PMID: 32347185), improvement in the clinical, biochemical and histological features in mice treated with AAV9-hASM gene therapy (Samaranch et al, 2019, PMID: 31434754), and adults with ASM deficiency treated with enzyme replacement therapy (Wasserstein et al, 2022, PMID: 35471153). Additional experimental evidence is available in the literature but the maximum points for experimental evidence (6 points) has been reached. In summary, SMPD1 is definitively associated with acid sphingomyelinase deficiency. This has been repeatedly demonstrated in both the research and clinical diagnostic settings, and has been upheld over time. This clinical validity classification was approved by the Lysosomal Diseases GCEP on July 8, 2022 (SOP Version 9). **Data provided by the ClinGen Prenatal GCEP on February 19, 2025:** Review of the prenatal presentation of this gene has shown no clear evidence of a prenatal phenotype in patients with biallelic pathogenic variants in SMPD1. There are two reports (PMID: 15305357; 27928775) of this condition presenting with non-immune hydrops fetalis using biochemical testing but no genetic testing was performed.

Niemann-Pick disease type ASTRONG

Inheritance Pattern: AR

Disease ID:MONDO:0009756

Submitter: Genomics England PanelApp

Niemann-Pick disease type BSTRONG

Inheritance Pattern: AR

Disease ID:MONDO:0011871

Submitter: Genomics England PanelApp

Niemann-Pick disease type ASUPPORTIVE

Inheritance Pattern: AR

Disease ID:MONDO:0009756

Submitter: Orphanet

Niemann-Pick disease type ASTRONG

Inheritance Pattern: AR

Disease ID:MONDO:0009756

Submitter: PanelApp Australia

Niemann-Pick diseaseDEFINITIVE

Inheritance Pattern: AR

Disease ID:MONDO:0001982

Submitter: Myriad Women's Health

Niemann-Pick disease type BSTRONG

Inheritance Pattern: AR

Disease ID:MONDO:0011871

Submitter: Labcorp Genetics (formerly Invitae)

Niemann-Pick disease type BSUPPORTIVE

Inheritance Pattern: AR

Disease ID:MONDO:0011871

Submitter: Orphanet

Niemann-Pick disease type BSTRONG

Inheritance Pattern: AR

Disease ID:MONDO:0011871

Submitter: PanelApp Australia

acid sphingomyelinase deficiencyDEFINITIVE

Inheritance Pattern: AR

Disease ID:MONDO:0100464

Submitter: Natera

Clinical Genomic Database (CGD)

Niemann-Pick disease, type A; Niemann-Pick disease, type BAR

Manifestation: Biochemical; Cardiovascular; Endocrine; Gastrointestinal; Neurologic; Ophthalmologic; Pulmonary

Intervention: General

Rationale: Genetic knowledge may be beneficial related to issues such as selection of optimal supportive care, informed medical decision-making, prognostic considerations, and avoidance of unnecessary testing

Comments: It has been suggested that it could be useful to screen for NPB in heart disease clinics (for patients with very low HDL), or in endocrinology clinics (in individuals with growth retardation)

Refs: 13516139; 2023926; 1301192; 1618760; 8664904; 12369017; 15877209; 16434659; 17360762; 17632693; 18815062; 19050888; 19405096; 20301544; 20386867; 22613662Source: CGD (NHGRI)

ClinVar Associated Diseases & Phenotypes

Reported disease conditions connected to SMPD1 variants in ClinVar

17 Conditions Cataloged
Niemann-Pick disease, type ATotal: 1004
Niemann-Pick disease, type BTotal: 852
not providedTotal: 236
Sphingomyelin/cholesterol lipidosisTotal: 124
not specifiedTotal: 106
Inborn genetic diseasesTotal: 103
SMPD1-related disorderTotal: 98
Acid sphingomyelinase deficiencyTotal: 22

ClinVar Variants & Pathogenicity by Type

Statistics based on transcript NM_000543.5. Only rare variants are included.

We include only reliable ClinVar variants with their consequences to MANE Select, MANE Plus Clinical transcripts, or transcripts with TSL equal to 1. Click a count to filter the variants table below.

Slight differences between displayed counts and ClinVar may occur due to a different transcript/consequence chosen by our variant effect predictor, or because we classify Benign/Likely benign as Likely benign and Pathogenic/Likely pathogenic as Likely pathogenic.

EffectPLPVUSLBBSum
synonymous
2
clinvar
12
clinvar
335
clinvar
3
clinvar
352
missense
27
clinvar
170
clinvar
243
clinvar
28
clinvar
1
clinvar
469
nonsense
30
clinvar
26
clinvar
56
start loss
1
clinvar
1
frameshift
75
clinvar
75
clinvar
3
clinvar
1
clinvar
154
splice donor/acceptor (+/-2bp)
4
clinvar
20
clinvar
1
clinvar
25
Total13729325836451057

Highest pathogenic variant AF is 0.0034753517

Loading ClinVar variants...

Transcript Catalog

Annotated transcript isoforms across RefSeq and Ensembl databases

Showing 4 of 27 transcripts
Transcript IDSourceProtein IDCoding ExonsMANE Status
NM_000543.5RefSeqNP_000534.36MANE Select
ENST00000342245.9EnsemblENSP00000340409.46MANE Select
NM_001007593.3RefSeqNP_001007594.26Standard
NM_001318087.2RefSeqNP_001305016.16Standard

Gene Ontology (GO) Annotations & Pathways

Biological processes, molecular functions, cellular components and pathways

Pathways ConsensusPathDB

  • Lysosome - Homo sapiens (human)
  • Necroptosis - Homo sapiens (human)
  • Sphingolipid signaling pathway - Homo sapiens (human)
  • Sphingolipid metabolism - Homo sapiens (human)
  • Ovarian Infertility Genes

Biological Process

  • sphingomyelin metabolic process
  • sphingomyelin catabolic process
  • glycosphingolipid metabolic process
  • signal transduction
  • nervous system development

Molecular Function

  • sphingomyelin phosphodiesterase activity
  • protein binding
  • phosphoric diester hydrolase activity
  • zinc ion binding
  • hydrolase activity, acting on glycosyl bonds

Cellular Component

  • extracellular space
  • lysosome
  • endosome
  • plasma membrane
  • lamellar body

gnomAD Constraint

Source: gnomAD

Gene type
protein_coding
Transcript type
protein_coding
Transcript
ENST00000342245
Coding exons
6
Length
4574
Individuals with no LoFs
125673
Homozygous LoFs
0
Heterozygous LoFs
75
Defined
125748
p
0.000298
Z-ScoreObservedExpectedObserved/ExpectedMutation RateTotal Possible
Missense-0.09743823771.010.00002194010
Missense (PolyPhen)124135.090.917931531
Synonymous-0.9951751591.100.000009201369
Loss of Function1.231824.60.7310.00000129241

Population LoF Frequency

PopulationCAFp-valueStatus
African0.000130.00012rare
Latino/Admixed American00.0absent
Ashkenazi Jewish0.00140.0014notable
East Asian00.0absent
Finnish0.0000460.000046rare
European (Non-Finnish)0.000310.00031rare
South Asian0.000720.00072rare
Other0.000160.00016rare

dbNSFP Gene Annotations

Source: dbNSFP

Function
FUNCTION: Converts sphingomyelin to ceramide (PubMed:1840600, PubMed:18815062, PubMed:27659707, PubMed:25920558). Also has phospholipase C activities toward 1,2-diacylglycerolphosphocholine and 1,2-diacylglycerolphosphoglycerol. {ECO:0000269|PubMed:1840600, ECO:0000269|PubMed:18815062, ECO:0000269|PubMed:25920558, ECO:0000269|PubMed:27659707, ECO:0000305}.; FUNCTION: Isoform 3 lacks residues that bind the cofactor Zn(2+) and has no enzyme activity. {ECO:0000269|PubMed:1840600, ECO:0000305}.;
Disease
DISEASE: Niemann-Pick disease A (NPDA) [MIM:257200]: An early- onset lysosomal storage disorder caused by failure to hydrolyze sphingomyelin to ceramide. It results in the accumulation of sphingomyelin and other metabolically related lipids in reticuloendothelial and other cell types throughout the body, leading to cell death. Niemann-Pick disease type A is a primarily neurodegenerative disorder characterized by onset within the first year of life, mental retardation, digestive disorders, failure to thrive, major hepatosplenomegaly, and severe neurologic symptoms. The severe neurological disorders and pulmonary infections lead to an early death, often around the age of four. Clinical features are variable. A phenotypic continuum exists between type A (basic neurovisceral) and type B (purely visceral) forms of Niemann-Pick disease, and the intermediate types encompass a cluster of variants combining clinical features of both types A and B. {ECO:0000269|PubMed:12556236, ECO:0000269|PubMed:1391960, ECO:0000269|PubMed:15221801, ECO:0000269|PubMed:15877209, ECO:0000269|PubMed:1618760, ECO:0000269|PubMed:1718266, ECO:0000269|PubMed:18815062, ECO:0000269|PubMed:19405096, ECO:0000269|PubMed:2023926, ECO:0000269|PubMed:20386867, ECO:0000269|PubMed:22818240, ECO:0000269|PubMed:23252888, ECO:0000269|PubMed:23430884, ECO:0000269|PubMed:26499107, ECO:0000269|PubMed:27338287, ECO:0000269|PubMed:8680412, ECO:0000269|PubMed:8693491, ECO:0000269|PubMed:9266408}. Note=The disease is caused by mutations affecting the gene represented in this entry.; DISEASE: Niemann-Pick disease B (NPDB) [MIM:607616]: A late-onset lysosomal storage disorder caused by failure to hydrolyze sphingomyelin to ceramide. It results in the accumulation of sphingomyelin and other metabolically related lipids in reticuloendothelial and other cell types throughout the body, leading to cell death. Clinical signs involve only visceral organs. The most constant sign is hepatosplenomegaly which can be associated with pulmonary symptoms. Patients remain free of neurologic manifestations. However, a phenotypic continuum exists between type A (basic neurovisceral) and type B (purely visceral) forms of Niemann-Pick disease, and the intermediate types encompass a cluster of variants combining clinical features of both types A and B. In Niemann-Pick disease type B, onset of the first symptoms occurs in early childhood and patients can survive into adulthood. {ECO:0000269|PubMed:12369017, ECO:0000269|PubMed:12556236, ECO:0000269|PubMed:1301192, ECO:0000269|PubMed:15241805, ECO:0000269|PubMed:16010684, ECO:0000269|PubMed:1618760, ECO:0000269|PubMed:16472269, ECO:0000269|PubMed:18815062, ECO:0000269|PubMed:1885770, ECO:0000269|PubMed:19050888, ECO:0000269|PubMed:19405096, ECO:0000269|PubMed:20386867, ECO:0000269|PubMed:21621718, ECO:0000269|PubMed:22613662, ECO:0000269|PubMed:22818240, ECO:0000269|PubMed:23252888, ECO:0000269|PubMed:23430512, ECO:0000269|PubMed:25920558, ECO:0000269|PubMed:26084044, ECO:0000269|PubMed:26499107, ECO:0000269|PubMed:27338287, ECO:0000269|PubMed:27659707, ECO:0000269|PubMed:8051942, ECO:0000269|PubMed:8664904}. Note=The disease is caused by mutations affecting the gene represented in this entry.;

Recessive Scores

pRec
0.414

Intolerance Scores

LoFtool
0.0435
RVIS EVS
1.72
RVIS percentile EVS
96.48

Essentials

Essential (CRISPR)
N
Essential (CRISPR2)
N
Essential (gene trap)
N
Indispensability pred.
E
Indispensability score
0.947

Gene Damage Prediction

AllRecessiveDominant
MendelianMediumMediumMedium
Primary ImmunodeficiencyMediumMediumMedium
CancerMediumMediumMedium
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