Acyl-carnitines as a Fuel Source in Heart Failure

The heart primarily uses long-chain fatty acids (FA) to fuel ATP synthesis. FA taken-up by transporters (e.g. CD36 and FATP3) is first attached to carnitine by CPT1 to form acyl-carnitines (ACs) that can then be imported into mitochondria. FA metabolism is reduced in heart failure (HF) with ACs found lower in myocardium but increased in plasma. Whether cardiomyocytes can take up AC and oxidize them for use in the TCA remains unknown.

Therefore, I aim to determine whether exogenous ACs can be oxidized by cardiomyocytes. Currently, I use immortalized cardiac cell lines, neonatal rat (NRVMs) and adult mouse cardiomyocytes cultured with 14C ACs and measure their oxidation via 14CO2 release.