Non-Communicable diseases (NCDs), including obesity, are emerging as the major health concern of the 21st century.

Excess adiposity and related NCD metabolic disturbances have stimulated development of new lipid compartment measurement technologies to help us to understand cellular energy exchange, to refine phenotypes, and to develop predictive markers of adverse clinical outcomes.

Recent advances now allow quantification of multiple intracellular lipid and adipose tissue compartments that can be evaluated across the human lifespan.

With magnetic resonance methods leading the way, newer approaches will give molecular structural and metabolic information beyond the laboratory in real-world settings.

The union between these new technologies and the growing NCD population is creating an exciting interface in advancing our understanding of chronic disease mechanisms.

http://www.cell.com/trends/endocrinology-metabolism/abstract/S1043-2760(15)00203-9