Lucas Lindeboom1, M. Eline Kooi1,
Matthijs Hesselink2, Patrick Schrauwen3, Joachim
Wildberger1, Vera Schrauwen-Hinderling1,3
1Radiology, Maastricht
University Medical Center, Maastricht, Netherlands; 2Human
Movement Sciences, Maastricht University Medical Center, Maastricht,
Netherlands; 3Human Biology, Maastricht University Medical Center,
Maastricht, Netherlands
Using long echo times in Proton Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy can provide new insight into skeletal muscle metabolism. Spectra with excellent separation of methylene and methyl peaks of IMCL and EMCL can be acquired in the vastus lateralis muscle. The use of carnitine as an internal concentration reference is more reliable, due to the diminished contamination of this peak at long TE. In vivo detection of acetylcarnitine is facilitated by the relative suppression of broad peaks from short T2 metabolites. Acetylcarnitine can possibly be seen as a marker for mitochondrial imbalance between acyl-CoA load and tricarboxylic acid cycle activity.