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Acylcarnitines

Meaning

Acylcarnitines are essential intermediate molecules formed when fatty acids are esterified to L-carnitine, a process crucial for cellular energy production. These compounds serve as metabolic shuttles, facilitating the transport of fatty acids into the mitochondrial matrix for beta-oxidation. Clinical analysis of their diverse profiles provides a metabolic fingerprint, offering valuable insights into mitochondrial function and potential defects in fatty acid metabolism. Abnormal accumulation of specific acylcarnitines is often a clinical marker for inherited metabolic disorders or acquired metabolic dysfunction like insulin resistance.