Cookies on this website

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you click 'Accept all cookies' we'll assume that you are happy to receive all cookies and you won't see this message again. If you click 'Reject all non-essential cookies' only necessary cookies providing core functionality such as security, network management, and accessibility will be enabled. Click 'Find out more' for information on how to change your cookie settings.

The Krebs cycle plays a fundamental role in cardiac energy production and is often implicated in the energetic imbalance characteristic of heart disease. In this study, we measured Krebs cycle flux in real time in perfused rat hearts using hyperpolarized magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS). [2-(13)C]Pyruvate was hyperpolarized and infused into isolated perfused hearts in both healthy and postischemic metabolic states. We followed the enzymatic conversion of pyruvate to lactate, acetylcarnitine, citrate, and glutamate with 1 s temporal resolution. The appearance of (13)C-labeled glutamate was delayed compared with that of other metabolites, indicating that Krebs cycle flux can be measured directly. The production of (13)C-labeled citrate and glutamate was decreased postischemia, as opposed to lactate, which was significantly elevated. These results showed that the control and fluxes of the Krebs cycle in heart disease can be studied using hyperpolarized [2-(13)C]pyruvate.

Original publication

DOI

10.1096/fj.09-129171

Type

Journal article

Journal

FASEB J

Publication Date

08/2009

Volume

23

Pages

2529 - 2538

Keywords

Acetylcarnitine, Animals, Carbon Isotopes, Citric Acid, Citric Acid Cycle, Energy Metabolism, Glutamic Acid, In Vitro Techniques, Kinetics, Lactic Acid, Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy, Male, Models, Cardiovascular, Myocardial Ischemia, Myocardium, Perfusion, Pyruvic Acid, Rats, Rats, Wistar