Medical Student Research Fellowship for Summer 2007

Mentor: Craig Malloy
Department: Advanced Imaging Research Center
Room number: NE4.214
Mail Code: 8568
Phone number: 214-645-2720
E-mail: craig.malloy@utsouthwestern.edu
Project title: Quantitation of Intramyocellular Lipids in Human Subjects at 7 Tesla

Human subjects IRB approved project number (where applicable):
IRB # 122006-044

Animal subjects IRB approved project number (where applicable):

Project Type (patient-based research, animal-based research, or basic research; this characterization is only to permit a general classification for grouping similar types of projects)

Patient-based

Brief Description of Project:

Triglyceride stores in skeletal muscle may be characterized by two features, location and composition. Fat is composed of saturated, monounsaturated, and polyunsaturated fatty acids, and may be located either inside or outside of skeletal muscle cells. Insulin resistance has been attributed to storage of excess fat inside skeletal muscle cells, and the risk of insulin resistance may be even higher if these fats are saturated. Other disorders are associated with abnormal fat content in skeletal muscle, and elite athletes also exhibit variation from the norm. Standard NMR methods provide some information but the data quality is limited because of the low magnetic field of clinical systems. A new 7 Tesla instrument is available for studies of skeletal fat. Because of the high field, information about intracellular lipid composition can be obtained. In this project, the student will be responsible for 1) assisting with exams, 2) analyzing NMR spectra acquired from patients and human subjects, 3) collating clinical data, and 4) organizing and interpreting images and spectra.

Previous Research Activities or Publications with Medical Students:

Chris McGuirk. Publication: Carvalho RA, Jones JG, McGuirk C, Sherry AD, Malloy CR. Hepatic gluconeogenesis and Krebs cycle fluxes in a CCl4 model of acute liver failure. NMR Biomed. 2002; 15: 45-51.

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