Interpretive Summary: In vivo estimation of lipogenesis using a bolus injection of [U-13C]glucose in pigs

By Anne Zinn

The use of radioactive isotopes to measure de novo lipogenesis in pigs has been well established; unlike radioactive isotopes, stable isotopes present little or no risk to human and animal subjects, but in vivo approaches to estimate de novo lipogenesis using stable isotopes have not been reported in pigs. A recent study published in the Journal of Animal Science adapted the method of bolus injection of radioactive glucose (14C) to use 13C-labeled glucose to estimate de novo lipogenesis in finishing pigs.

Results of the present study demonstrated that the bolus injection method using [U-13C] glucose allows the estimation of glucose Rd and Rglucose-lipids, which can then be used to estimate the rate of lipogenesis in vivo in pigs. These results indicate that this method could be a viable solution to replace the use of radioactive isotopes.

The full paper can be found on the Journal of Animal Science webpage.