Fig. 2.

Alterations in transporter localisation in diabetic cardiomyocytes compared to healthy cardiomyocytes. a Substrate uptake in healthy cardiomyocytes. The entry of glucose and fatty acids is facilitated by glucose transporter 4 (GLUT4) and fatty acid transporter CD36. The heart can acutely react to a change in energy demand by reversible translocation of these transporters from intracellular storage compartments. Once these substrates have entered the cell they can be used for ATP production by mitochondrial oxidation or they can be stored as glycogen (not shown) or in lipid droplets. b Substrate uptake in diabetic cardiomyocytes: during the development of insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes, the localisation of GLUT4 and CD36 permanently alters. CD36 presence at the sarcolemma increases which associates with increased fatty acid uptake. In addition, fatty acid storage increases which is thought to interfere with insulin-stimulated glucose uptake