title: Carnitine palmitoyltransferase II specificity towards beta-oxidation intermediates--evidence for a reverse carnitine cycle in mitochondria.
abstract: Using isolated rat liver mitochondria, in the absence or presence of malonyl-CoA (an inhibitor of carnitine palmitoyltransferase I), we have found that carnitine palmitoyltransferase II (CPT II) is active with palmitoyl-CoA as well as with its beta-oxidation intermediates. A partially purified CPT II fraction from rat liver mitochondria was shown to be able to convert 3-hydroxypalmitoyl-CoA to 3-hydroxypalmitoylcarnitine, which could be identified by fast-atom-bombardment mass spectrometry. This apparent broad specificity of CPT II was further evaluated by kinetic studies using purified CPT II. It was found that CPT II readily accepts 3-oxopalmitoyl-CoA, palmitoyl-CoA, 3-hydroxypalmitoyl-CoA and 2,3-unsaturated palmitoyl-CoA as substrates with decreasing order of affinity. The apparent Vmax values found for the first three compounds were of the same order of magnitude; the 2,3-unsaturated acyl-CoA was the poorest substrate. Kinetic studies with purified CPT II showed 3-hydroxypalmitoyl-CoA to have the lowest K0.5 value (20 +/- 6 microM) of all the CoA esters studied; the highest K0.5 value (65 +/- 17 microM) was found for the 3-oxo intermediate. These findings support the hypothesis that CPT II is involved in the export of toxic long-chain acyl-CoA esters from the mitochondria by first converting them into the corresponding carnitine esters, followed by transport out of the mitochondria and subsequently out of the cell.
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Chemistry, Academic Medical Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: F V
authors.initials: FV
authors.lastname: Ventura
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Ijlst
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Ruiter
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Ofman
authors.forename: C G
authors.initials: CG
authors.lastname: Costa
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Jakobs
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Duran
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Tavares de Almeida
authors.forename: L L
authors.initials: LL
authors.lastname: Bieber
authors.forename: R J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Wanders
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002334:Carnitine O-Palmitoyltransferase / Q000378:metabolism*; D008297:Male; D008930:Mitochondria, Liver / Q000201:enzymology*; D010084:Oxidation-Reduction; D010171:Palmitoyl Coenzyme A / Q000378:metabolism; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D016339:Spectrometry, Mass, Fast Atom Bombardment; D013379:Substrate Specificity
chemical_list: D010171:Palmitoyl Coenzyme A; D002334:Carnitine O-Palmitoyltransferase