Peng
Cao1, 2, Zhongwei Qiao1, 2, Anna
M. Wang1, 2, Shujuan Fan1, 2,
Victor B. Xie1, 2, Jian Yang1, 3,
Ed X. Wu1, 2
1Laboratory of Biomedical Imaging and Signal Processing, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China; 2Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China; 3Medical Imaging Center of the First Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shanxi Province, China
In skeletal muscle, lipids are stored as intramyocellular lipid (IMCL) inside muscle cells and extramyocellular lipid (EMCL) in large adipocytes. IMCL exists in form of small spherical droplets that are often found next to mitochondria. In this study, we aimed to characterize the lipid diffusion within IMCL droplet. Our experimental results demonstrated that small IMCL microstructure leads to highly restricted lipid diffusion in IMCL droplet. Such IMCL diffusion characterization may provide a sensitive maker to probe the IMCL droplet microstructure, leading to a potentially valuable tool for investigating IMCL droplet dynamics and metabolism in vivo.