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Free fatty acids and exercise

B Saltin1, P O Astrand

  • 1Department of Physiology III, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.

The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition
|May 1, 1993
PubMed
Summary
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Skeletal muscles utilize fatty acids (FAs) for energy, with transport into cells and mitochondria involving specific proteins and carnitine. Physical training enhances FA uptake and oxidation, though the underlying mechanisms require further investigation.

Area of Science:

  • Exercise Physiology
  • Skeletal Muscle Metabolism
  • Lipid Biochemistry

Background:

  • Historically, the direct utilization of lipids by contracting skeletal muscles was not well understood.
  • Early research in the 1950s using radiolabeled fatty acids (FAs) confirmed fat transport into muscle cells.
  • Key components for FA transport into muscle cells and mitochondria, including FA-transporting proteins and carnitine, have been identified.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To elucidate the mechanisms limiting lipid utilization as an energy source during exercise.
  • To investigate the impact of physical training on fatty acid uptake and oxidation in skeletal muscles.
  • To understand the adaptations in FA metabolism induced by exercise.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized [14C]-tagged fatty acids (FAs) to trace lipid metabolism in skeletal muscle.

Related Experiment Videos

  • Identified FA-transporting proteins in the sarcolemma and cytoplasm.
  • Investigated the role of carnitine and carnitine transferase in mitochondrial FA transport.
  • Compared FA uptake and oxidation rates in exercising and trained individuals.

    • Main Results:

    • Muscle uptake of delivered free fatty acids (FFAs) during exercise is limited, typically to 2-4% of the supply.
    • Only a fraction of the taken-up FAs are subsequently oxidized.
    • Physical training enhances FA uptake and oxidation by contracting muscles, even without increased FFA supply.
    • The precise mechanisms driving these training-induced adaptations remain unclear.

    Conclusions:

    • Skeletal muscle directly metabolizes fatty acids for energy, a process involving specific transport proteins and carnitine-dependent mitochondrial uptake.
    • Lipid utilization during exercise is constrained by factors beyond FFA availability.
    • Exercise training significantly improves the capacity of skeletal muscles to uptake and oxidize fatty acids, highlighting a critical area for further research into adaptive mechanisms.