Analysis of Whole-Body Branched-Chain Amino Acid Metabolism in Mice Utilizing Carbon-Labeled Mouse Feed

Cancer cells have altered metabolism relative to normal cells, and methods to study metabolism across tissues are needed to understand how whole-body metabolic alterations influence tumor metabolism. Recent studies have found elevated branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs – leucine, isoleucine and valine) present in the serum of patients with early pancreatic cancers. This application note describes the experimental approaches used to define the contribution of each of these amino acids to plasma BCAA levels in mice.