ArticleDiabetologia2014
The effect of a single 2 h bout of aerobic exercise on ectopic lipids in skeletal muscle, liver and the myocardium.
Article in Diabetologia, 2014. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 16 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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Who cites it
16 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 43 citations in OpenAlex.
- Comparative effects of combined aerobic exercise-based interventions on metabolic, cardiovascular, and inflammatory markers in adult men: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Frontiers in physiology · 2026Pooled it
- The effect of exercise on intramyocellular acetylcarnitine (AcCtn) concentration in adult growth hormone deficiency (GHD).Scientific reports · 2019Trial
- Intramyocellular lipid accumulation after sprint interval and moderate-intensity continuous training in healthy and diabetic subjects.Physiological reports · 2019Trial
- Exercise Training Reduces Intrathoracic Fat Regardless of Defective Glucose Tolerance.Medicine and science in sports and exercise · 2017Trial
- Trial
- Intramyocellular lipid use is altered with exercise in males with childhood-onset obesity despite no differences in substrate oxidation.International journal of obesity (2005) · 2025Article
- Myocardial steatosis across the spectrum of human health and disease.Experimental physiology · 2024Review
- Contribution of skeletal muscle and serum lipids to muscle contraction induced by neuromuscular electrical stimulation in older individuals.Physiological reports · 2022Article
- Acute exercise in mice transiently remodels the hepatic lipidome in an intensity-dependent manner.Lipids in health and disease · 2020Article
- Marathon running transiently depletes the myocardial lipid pool.Physiological reports · 2020Observational
- Skeletal muscle in healthy humans exhibits a day-night rhythm in lipid metabolism.Molecular metabolism · 2020Article
- Relationship between physical activity and intramyocellular lipid content is different between young and older adults.European journal of applied physiology · 2019Article
- The Flexibility of Ectopic Lipids.International journal of molecular sciences · 2016Review
- Effects of aerobic exercise on ectopic lipids in patients with growth hormone deficiency before and after growth hormone replacement therapy.Scientific reports · 2016Article
- Acute exercise does not decrease liver fat in men with overweight or NAFLD.Scientific reports · 2015Article
- Predictors of Ectopic Fat in Humans.Current obesity reports · 2014Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
9 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
aims/hypothesisEctopic lipids are fuel stores in non-adipose tissues (skeletal muscle [intramyocellular lipids; IMCL], liver [intrahepatocellular lipids; IHCL] and heart [intracardiomyocellular lipids; ICCL]). IMCL can be depleted by physical activity. Preliminary data suggest that aerobic exercise increases IHCL. Data on exercise-induced changes on ICCL is scarce. Increased IMCL and IHCL have been related to insulin resistance in skeletal muscles and liver, whereas this has not been documented in the heart. The aim of this study was to assess the acute effect of aerobic exercise on the flexibility of IMCL, IHCL and ICCL in insulin-sensitive participants in relation to fat availability, insulin sensitivity and exercise capacity.
methodsHealthy physically active men were included. VO(2max) was assessed by spiroergometry and insulin sensitivity was calculated using the HOMA index. Visceral and subcutaneous fat were separately quantified by MRI. Following a standardised dietary fat load over 3 days, IMCL, IHCL and ICCL were measured using MR spectroscopy before and after a 2 h exercise session at 50-60% of VO(2max). Metabolites were measured during exercise.
resultsTen men (age 28.9 ± 6.4 years, mean ± SD; VO(2max) 56.3 ± 6.4 ml kg(-1) min(-1); BMI 22.75 ± 1.4 kg/m(2)) were recruited. A 2 h exercise session resulted in a significant decrease in IMCL (-17 ± 22%, p = 0.008) and ICCL (-17 ± 14%, p = 0.002) and increase in IHCL (42 ± 29%, p = 0.004). No significant correlations were found between the relative changes in ectopic lipids, fat availability, insulin sensitivity, exercise capacity or changes of metabolites during exercise. CONCLUSIONS/
interpretationIn this group, physical exercise decreased ICCL and IMCL but increased IHCL. Fat availability, insulin sensitivity, exercise capacity and metabolites during exercise are not the only factors affecting ectopic lipids during exercise.
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