Fatty acid beta-oxidation is a key process in mammalian lipid catabolism. Disturbance of this process results in severe clinical symptoms, including dysfunction of the liver, a major beta-oxidizing tissue. For a thorough understanding of this process, a comprehensive analysis of involved fatty acid and acyl-carnitine intermediates is desired, but capable methods are lacking. Here, we introduce oxaalkyne and alkyne fatty acids as novel tracers to study the beta-oxidation of long- and medium-chain fatty acids in liver lysates and primary hepatocytes.
