Methods for determining total body skeletal muscle mass

Abstract

The present invention is based on the finding that enrichment of D3-creatinine in a urine sample following oral administration of a single defined dose of D3-creatine can be used to calculate total-body creatine pool size and total body skeletal muscle mass in a subject. The invention further encompasses methods for detecting creatinine and D3-creatinine in a single sample. The methods of the invention find use, inter alia, in diagnosing disorders related to skeletal muscle mass, and in screening potential therapeutic agents to determine their effects on muscle mass.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION[0001]This invention relates to methods for determining the total body pool size of creatine and total body skeletal muscle mass in a subject by the use of an orally administered tracer dose of D3-creatine, and encompasses improved methods for determining the concentration of creatinine in a biological sample.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0002]Skeletal muscle plays a central role in metabolic adaptations to increasing and decreasing physical activity, in disease (e.g. cachexia), in obesity, and in aging (e.g. sarcopenia). Sarcopenia is described as the age-associated loss of skeletal muscle (Evans (1995) J. Gerontol. 50A:5-8) and has been associated with mobility disability (Janssen and Ross, (2005) J. Nutr. Health Aging 9:408-19) and greatly increased health-care costs for elderly people (Janssen et al. (2004) J. Am. Geriatr. Soc. 52:80-5). Loss of skeletal muscle with advancing age is associated with decreased energy requirements and concomitant increase in bod...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

This patent text is about a new method to determine the concentration of creatinine in a biological sample. Creatinine is a substance found in muscle tissue. This method allows for the simultaneous measurement of creatinine and another substance called D3-creatinine in a single sample. This method is simpler and more accurate than previous methods, and can be used with widely-available equipment. The invention is useful for determining muscle mass in patients.

Problems solved by technology

Loss of skeletal muscle with advancing age is associated with decreased energy requirements and concomitant increase in body fatness, weakness and disability, insulin resistance and risk of diabetes.

However, current methodologies for quantification of muscle synthesis and muscle mass often involve invasive procedures (e.g. muscle biopsies) or rely on expensive equipment (i.e. DEXA, MRI, or CT) that provides only indirect data on whole body muscle mass.

Because of these limitations, no method is routinely used in the clinic for estimation of skeletal muscle mass, and no diagnostic criteria for estimates of muscle mass have been produced.

As a result, there is a no straightforward way to determine the effects of potential therapeutic agents on muscle protein synthesis mass.

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