[Nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. New tool for investigating cellular metabolism in living systems]

Nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy is increasingly used to study cellular metabolism in a manner respecting cell integrity. The contribution of phosphorus-31 and carbon-13 NMR is discussed and illustrated by specific examples taken from work carried out in this laboratory or from the literature. A particular emphasis is layed on metabolite identification, quantitation and fluxes as studied by phosphorus-31 NMR which provides a direct insight of energy metabolism. The analysis of perfused rat liver by natural abundance carbon-13 NMR illustrates the potential of the method of study non-invasively lipid and carbohydrate metabolism in living systems. The use of carbon-13 enriched substrates to pinpoint a specific pathway of the intermediary metabolism is described in the case of excised rat heart and liver perfused with (2-C13)-acetate. Clinical applications of NMR spectroscopy are rapidly reviewed.