Skip to main content
Journal cover image

Carnitine revisited: potential use as adjunctive treatment in diabetes.

Publication ,  Journal Article
Power, RA; Hulver, MW; Zhang, JY; Dubois, J; Marchand, RM; Ilkayeva, O; Muoio, DM; Mynatt, RL
Published in: Diabetologia
April 2007

AIMS/HYPOTHESIS: This study examined the efficacy of supplemental L: -carnitine as an adjunctive diabetes therapy in mouse models of metabolic disease. We hypothesised that carnitine would facilitate fatty acid export from tissues in the form of acyl-carnitines, thereby alleviating lipid-induced insulin resistance. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Obese mice with genetic or diet-induced forms of insulin resistance were fed rodent chow +/- 0.5% L: -carnitine for a period of 1-8 weeks. Metabolic outcomes included insulin tolerance tests, indirect calorimetry and mass spectrometry-based profiling of acyl-carnitine esters in tissues and plasma. RESULTS: Carnitine supplementation improved insulin-stimulated glucose disposal in genetically diabetic mice and wild-type mice fed a high-fat diet, without altering body weight or food intake. In severely diabetic mice, carnitine supplementation increased average daily respiratory exchange ratio from 0.886 +/- 0.01 to 0.914 +/- 0.01 (p < 0.01), reflecting a marked increase in systemic carbohydrate oxidation. Similarly, under insulin-stimulated conditions, carbohydrate oxidation was higher and total energy expenditure increased from 172 +/- 10 to 210 +/- 9 kJ kg fat-free mass(-1) h(-1) in the carnitine-supplemented compared with control animals. These metabolic improvements corresponded with a 2.3-fold rise in circulating levels of acetyl-carnitine, which accounts for 86 and 88% of the total acyl-carnitine pool in plasma and skeletal muscle, respectively. Carnitine supplementation also increased several medium- and long-chain acyl-carnitine species in both plasma and tissues. CONCLUSIONS/INTERPRETATION: These findings suggest that carnitine supplementation relieves lipid overload and glucose intolerance in obese rodents by enhancing mitochondrial efflux of excess acyl groups from insulin-responsive tissues. Carefully controlled clinical trials should be considered.

Duke Scholars

Altmetric Attention Stats
Dimensions Citation Stats

Published In

Diabetologia

DOI

ISSN

0012-186X

Publication Date

April 2007

Volume

50

Issue

4

Start / End Page

824 / 832

Location

Germany

Related Subject Headings

  • Vitamin B Complex
  • Pyruvate Dehydrogenase (Lipoamide)
  • Mice, Obese
  • Mice
  • Mass Spectrometry
  • Male
  • Insulin Resistance
  • Glycerol
  • Glucose Tolerance Test
  • Fatty Acids
 

Citation

APA
Chicago
ICMJE
MLA
NLM
Power, R. A., Hulver, M. W., Zhang, J. Y., Dubois, J., Marchand, R. M., Ilkayeva, O., … Mynatt, R. L. (2007). Carnitine revisited: potential use as adjunctive treatment in diabetes. Diabetologia, 50(4), 824–832. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00125-007-0605-4
Power, R. A., M. W. Hulver, J. Y. Zhang, J. Dubois, R. M. Marchand, O. Ilkayeva, D. M. Muoio, and R. L. Mynatt. “Carnitine revisited: potential use as adjunctive treatment in diabetes.Diabetologia 50, no. 4 (April 2007): 824–32. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00125-007-0605-4.
Power RA, Hulver MW, Zhang JY, Dubois J, Marchand RM, Ilkayeva O, et al. Carnitine revisited: potential use as adjunctive treatment in diabetes. Diabetologia. 2007 Apr;50(4):824–32.
Power, R. A., et al. “Carnitine revisited: potential use as adjunctive treatment in diabetes.Diabetologia, vol. 50, no. 4, Apr. 2007, pp. 824–32. Pubmed, doi:10.1007/s00125-007-0605-4.
Power RA, Hulver MW, Zhang JY, Dubois J, Marchand RM, Ilkayeva O, Muoio DM, Mynatt RL. Carnitine revisited: potential use as adjunctive treatment in diabetes. Diabetologia. 2007 Apr;50(4):824–832.
Journal cover image

Published In

Diabetologia

DOI

ISSN

0012-186X

Publication Date

April 2007

Volume

50

Issue

4

Start / End Page

824 / 832

Location

Germany

Related Subject Headings

  • Vitamin B Complex
  • Pyruvate Dehydrogenase (Lipoamide)
  • Mice, Obese
  • Mice
  • Mass Spectrometry
  • Male
  • Insulin Resistance
  • Glycerol
  • Glucose Tolerance Test
  • Fatty Acids