Excessive sugar intake including high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) is implicated in the rise of obesity, insulin resistance and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. Liver glycogen synthesis is influenced by both fructose and insulin signaling. Therefore, the effect of HFCS on hepatic glycogenesis was evaluated in mice feeding ad-libitum. Using deuterated water: the fraction of glycogen derived from triose-P sources, Krebs cycle substrates, and direct pathway + cycling, was measured in 9 normal-chow fed mice (NC) and 12 mice fed normal chow plus a 55% fructose/45% glucose mix in the drinking water at 30% w/v (HFCS-55). This was enriched with [U- 13 C]fructose or [U- 13 C]glucose to determine the contribution of each to glycogenesis. For NC, direct pathway + cycling, Krebs cycle, and triose-P sources accounted for 66 ± 0.7%, 23 ± 0.8% and 11 ± 0.4% of glycogen synthesis, respectively. HFCS-55 mice had similar direct pathway + cycling (64 ± 1%) but lower Krebs cycle (12 ± 1%, p < 0.001) and higher triose-P contributions (24 ± 1%, p < 0.001). HFCS-55-fructose contributed 17 ± 1% via triose-P and 2 ± 0% via Krebs cycle. HFCS-55-glucose contributed 16 ± 3% via direct pathway and 1 ± 0% via Krebs cycle. In conclusion, HFCS-55 supplementation resulted in similar hepatic glycogen deposition rates. Indirect pathway contributions shifted from Krebs cycle to Triose-P sources reflecting HFCS-55-fructose utilization, while HFCS-55-glucose was incorporated almost exclusively by the direct pathway.

Dietary glucose and fructose are both efficiently assimilated by the liver but a comprehensive measurement of this process starting from their conversion to sugar phosphates, involvement of the pentose phosphate pathway (PPP), and conversion to glycogen and lipid storage products, remains incomplete. Mice were fed a chow diet supplemented with 35 g/100 mL drinking water of a 55/45 fructose/glucose mixture for 18 weeks. On the final night, the sugar mixture was enriched with either [U-13C]glucose or [U-13C]fructose, and deuterated water (2H2O) was also administered. 13C-isotopomers representing newly synthesized hepatic glucose-6-phosphate (glucose-6-P), glycerol-3-phosphate, and lipogenic acetyl-CoA were quantified by 2H and 13C NMR analysis of post-mortem liver glycogen and triglyceride. These data were applied to a metabolic model covering glucose-6-P, PPP, triose-P, and de novo lipogenesis (DNL) fluxes. The glucose supplement was converted to glucose-6-P via the direct pathway, while the fructose supplement was metabolized by the liver to gluconeogenic triose-P via fructokinase–aldolase–triokinase. Glucose-6-P from all carbohydrate sources accounted for 40–60% of lipogenic acetyl-CoA and 10–12% was oxidized by the pentose phosphate pathway (PPP). The yield of NADPH from PPP flux accounted for a minority (~30%) of the total DNL requirement. In conclusion, this approach integrates measurements of glucose-6-P, PPP, and DNL fluxes to provide a holistic and informative assessment of hepatic glucose and fructose metabolism.

Purpose The pentose phosphate pathway (PPP) is an important component of hepatic intermediary metabolism. Jin et al developed an elegant 13C‐NMR method for measuring hepatic PPP flux by quantifying the distribution of glucose 13C‐isotopomers formed from [U‐13C]glycerol. We demonstrate that this approach can be extended to exogenous [U‐13C]fructose and [U‐13C]glucose precursors by 13C‐NMR analysis of glycogen. Methods Twelve male C57BL/6 mice fed standard chow were provided a 55/45 mixture of fructose and glucose at 30% w/v in the drinking water for 18 wk. On the evening before sacrifice, the fructose component was enriched with 20% [U‐13C]fructose for 6 mice, while the glucose component was enriched with 20% [U‐13C]glucose for the remaining 6 mice. Mice were allowed to feed and drink naturally overnight, and then, euthanized. Livers were freeze‐clamped and glycogen was extracted and derivatized for 13C NMR spectroscopy. Flux of each sugar into the PPP relative to its incorporation into glycogen was quantified from selected 13C glycogen isotopomer ratios. Results Both [U‐13C]fructose and [U‐13C]glucose precursors yielded glycogen 13C‐isotopomer distributions that were characteristic of PPP activity. The fraction of [U‐13C]glucose utilized by the PPP relative to its conversion to glycogen via the direct pathway was 14 ± 1%, while that from [U‐13C]fructose relative to its conversion to glycogen via the indirect pathway was significantly lower (10 ± 1%, P = .00032). Conclusions Hepatic PPP fluxes from both [U‐13C]glucose and [U‐13C]fructose precursors were assessed by 13C NMR analysis of glycogen 13C‐isotopomers. Glucose‐6‐phosphate generated via glucokinase and the direct pathway is preferentially utilized by the PPP.

The synthesis and turnover of triglyceride in adipose tissue involves enzymes with preferences for specific fatty acid classes and/or regioselectivity regarding the fatty acid position within the glycerol moiety. The focus of the current study was to characterize both the composition of fatty acids and their positional distribution in triglycerides of biopsied human subcutaneous adipose tissue, from subjects with wide ranges of body mass index (BMI) and insulin sensitivity, using 13C nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. The triglyceride sn2 position was significantly more enriched with monounsaturated fatty acids compared with that of sn1,3, while the abundance of saturated fatty acids was significantly lower in the sn2 position compared with that of sn1,3. Furthermore, the analysis revealed significant positive correlations between the total fraction of palmitoleic acid with both BMI and insulin sensitivity scores (homeostatic model assessment of insulin resistance index). Additionally, we established that 13C NMR chemical shifts for ω‐3 signals, centered at 31.9 ppm, provided superior resolution of the most abundant fatty acid species, including palmitoleate, compared with the ω‐2 signals that were used previously. 13C NMR spectroscopy reveals for the first time a highly nonhomogenous distribution of fatty acids in the glycerol sites of human adipose tissue triglyceride, and that these distributions are correlated with different phenotypes, such as BMI and insulin sensitivity.