The acid sphingomyelinase/ceramide system has been shown to play a crucial role in bacterial and viral infections, including Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Staphylococcus aureus, Ebola, Rhinoviruses, and SARS-CoV-2 (Grassme et al., 2005; Miller et al., 2012; Kornhuber et al., 2022). Here, SMPD1 is linked to viral infectious disease.