Carnitine-acylcarnitine translocase. Inhibition by alpha-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamate and evidence for separate identity from the pyruvate transporting system of mitochondria

Some of the known inhibitors of pyruvate transport inhibited the activity of carnitine-acylcarnitine translocase. Their order of effectiveness with millimolar concentration required for 50% inhibition given in parentheses, was: Compound UK-5099 (alpha-cyano-beta-(1-phenylindol-3-yl)acrylate) (0.1); alpha-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamate (0.17); alpha-cyano-3-hydroxycinnamate (1); alpha-cyanocinnamate (1); alpha-fluorocinnamate (7); transcinnamate (10); p-hydroxycinnamate (10); phenylpyruvate (22); p-hydroxyphenylpyruvate (25). Kinetically, the alpha-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamate inhibition was mixed and the p-hydroxyphenylpyruvate inhibition was noncompetitive with respect to external (-)-carnitine. The alpha-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamate inhibition was reversible and resulted from its ability to act as a thiol reagent. In general, alpha-cyanocinnamate and its derivatives inhibit carnitine transport at concentrations 100 to 5000 times as high as those known to pyruvate transport. At millimolar concentrations, alpha-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamate inhibited the mitochondrial transport of molecules other than carnitine as well as the activity of carnitine acyltransferases. Pyruvate and carnitine did not complete for transport into and out of mitochondria. These results establish that transmitochondrial transport mechanisms for carnitine and pyruvate involve different carriers.     

The mitochondrial pyruvate carrier. Kinetics and specificity for substrates and inhibitors.

1. Studies on the kinetics of pyruvate transport into mitochondria by an 'inhibitor-stop' technique were hampered by the decarboxylation of pyruvate by mitochondria even in the presence of rotenone. Decarboxylation was minimal at 6 degrees C. At this temperature the Km for pyruvate was 0.15 mM and Vmax. was 0.54nmol/min per mg of protein; alpha-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamate was found to be a non-competitive inhibitor, Ki 6.3 muM, and phenyl-pyruvate a competitive inhibitor, Ki 1.8 mM. 2. At 100 muM concentration, alpha-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamate rapidly and almost totally inhibited O2 uptake by rat heart mitochondria oxidizing pyruvate. Inhibition could be detected at concentrations of inhibitor as low as 1 muM although inhibition took time to develop at this concentration. Inhibition could be reversed by diluting out the inhibitor. 3. Various analogues of alpha-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamate were tested on rat liver and heart mitochondria. The important structural features appeared to be the alpha-cyanopropenoate group and the hydrophobic aromatic side chain. Alpha-Cyanocinnamate, alpha-cyano-5-phenyl-2,4-pentadienoate and compound UK 5099 [alpha-cyano-beta-(2-phenylindol-3-yl)acrylate] were all more powerful inhibitors than alpha-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamate showing 50% inhibition of pyruvate-dependent O2 consumption by rat heart mitochondria at concentrations of 200, 200 and 50 nM respectively. 4. The specificity of the carrier for its substrate was studied by both influx and efflux experiments. Oxamate, 2-oxobutyrate, phenylpyruvate, 2-oxo-4-methyl-pentanoate, chloroacetate, dichloroacetate, difluoroacetate, 2-chloropropionate, 3-chloropropionate and 2,2-dichloropropionate all exchanged with pyruvate, whereas acetate, lactate and trichloroacetate did not. 5. Pyruvate entry into the mitochondria was shown to be accompanied by the transport of a proton (or by exchange with an OH-ion). This proton flux was inhibited by alpha-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamate and allowed measurements of pyruvate transport at higher temperatures to be made. The activation energy of mitochondrial pyruvate transport was found to be 113 kJ (27 kcal)/mol and by extrapolation the rate of transport of pyruvate at 37 degrees C to be 42 nmol/min per mg of protein. The possibility that pyruvate transport into mitochondria may be rate limiting and involved in the regulation of gluconegenesis is discussed. 6. The transport of various monocarboxylic acids into mitochondria was studied by monitoring proton influx. The transport of dichloroacetate, difluoroacetate and oxamate appeared to be largely dependent on the pyruvate carrier and could be inhibited by pyruvate-transport inhibitors. However, many other halogenated and 2-oxo acids which could exchange with pyruvate on the carrier entered freely even in the presence of inhibitor.     

Transport of pyruvate and lactate in yeast mitochondria.

Evidence for the existence of mediated transport of pyruvate and lactate in isolated mitochondria of Saccharomyces cerevisiae is presented. 1. The mitochondrial oxidation of pyruvate is specifically inhibited by the monocarboxylic oxoacids alpha-ketoisocaproate and by alpha-cyano-3-hydroxycinnamate, while pyruvate and malate dehydrogenases activities are not inhibited. 2. The stimulation of the mitochondrial oxidations of succinate, alpha-ketoglutarate and citrate by pyruvate are also inhibited by alpha-cyano-3-hydroxycinnamate. 3. The [14C]pyruvate uptake by yeast mitochondria follows saturation kinetics and is completely inhibited by alpha-cyano-3-hydroxycinnamate. 4. Large amplitude passive swellings of mitochondria of the wild type and of cytoplasmic rho- and rho-n mutants are induced by isoosmotic ammonium pyruvate and lactate. These pH-dependent swellings are inhibited by alpha-cyano-3-hydroxycinnamate suggesting that the carrier system is not coded by mitochondrial DNA.     

The kinetics of transport of lactate and pyruvate into rat hepatocytes. Evidence for the presence of a specific carrier similar to that in erythrocytes.

Time courses of L-lactate and pyruvate uptake into isolated rat hepatocytes were measured in a citrate-based medium to generate a pH gradient (alkaline inside), by using the silicone-oil-filtration technique at 0 degrees C to minimize metabolism. At low concentrations of lactate and pyruvate (0.5 mM), transport was inhibited by over 95% by 5 mM-alpha-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamate, whereas at higher concentrations (greater than 10 mM) a significant proportion of transport could not be inhibited. The rate of this non-inhibitable transport was linearly related to the substrate concentration, was less with pyruvate than with L-lactate, and appeared to be due to diffusion of undissociated acid. Uptake of D-lactate was not inhibited by alpha-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamate and occurred only by diffusion. Kinetic parameters for the carrier-mediated transport process were obtained after correction of the initial rates of uptake of lactate and pyruvate in the absence of 5 mM-alpha-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamate by that in the presence of inhibitor. Under the conditions used, the Km values for L-lactate and pyruvate were 2.4 and 0.6 mM respectively and the Ki for alpha-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamate as a competitive inhibitor was 0.11 mM. Km values for the transport of L-lactate and pyruvate into rat erythrocytes under similar conditions were 3.0 and 0.96 mM. The Vmax. of lactate and pyruvate transport into hepatocytes at 0 degrees C was 3 nmol/min per mg of protein. Carrier-mediated transport of 0.5 mM-L-lactate was inhibited by 0.2 mM-p-chloromercuribenzenesulphonate (greater than 90%), 0.5 mM-quercetin (80%), 0.6 mM-isobutylcarbonyl-lactyl anhydride (70%) and 0.5 mM-4,4'-di-isothiocyanostilbene-2,2'-disulphonate (50%). A similar pattern of inhibition of lactate transport is seen in erythrocytes. It is suggested that the same or a similar carrier protein exists in both tissues. The results also show that L-lactate transport into rat hepatocytes is very rapid at physiological temperatures and is unlikely to restrict the rate of its metabolism. Differences between our results and those of Fafournoux, Demigne & Remesy [(1985) J. Biol. Chem. 260, 292-299] are discussed.     

Transport of pyruvate nad lactate into human erythrocytes. Evidence for the involvement of the chloride carrier and a chloride-independent carrier.

The kinetics and activation energy of entry of pyruvate and lactate into the erythrocyte were studied at concentrations below 4 and 15mM respectively. The Km and Vmax. values for both substrates are reported, and it is shown that pyruvate inhibits competitively with respect to lactate and vice versa. In both cases the Km for the carboxylate as a substrate was the same as its Ki as an inhibitor. Alpha-Cyano-4-hydroxycinnamate and its analogues inhibited the uptake of both lactate and pyruvate competitively. Inhibition was also produced by treatment of cells with fluorodinitrobenzene but not with the thiol reagents or Pronase. At high concentrations of pyruvate or lactate (20mM), uptake of the carboxylate was accompanied by an efflux of Cl-ions. This efflux of Cl- was inhibited by alpha-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamate and picrate and could be totally abolished by very low (less than 10 muM) concentrations of the inhibitor of Cl- transport, 4,4'-di-isothiocyanostilbene-2,2'-disulphonic acid. This inhibitor titrated out the chlordie efflux induced by pyruvate, bicarbonate, formate and fluoride, in each case total inhibition becoming apparent when approximately 1.2x10(6) molecules of inhibitor were present per erythrocyte, that is, about one inhibitor molecule per molecule of the Cl- carrier. Evan when Cl- efflux was totally blocked pyruvate and lactate uptake occurred. Kinetic evidence is presented which suggests that the Cl- carrier can transport pyruvate and lactate with a high Km and high Vmax., but that an additional carrier with a low Km and a low Vmax. also exists. This carrier catalyses the exchange of small carboxylate anions with intracellular lactate, is competitively inhibited by alpha-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamate and non-competitively inhibited by picrate. The Cl- carrier shows a reverse pattern of inhibition. It is concluded that net efflux of lactic acid from the cell must occur on the Cl- carrier and involve exchange with HCO3 - followed by loss of CO2. The low Km carrier might be used in pyruvate/lactate or acetoacetate/beta-hydroxybutyrate exchanges involved in transferring reducing power across the cell membrane. The possibility that the Cl- carrier exists in cells other than the erythrocyte is discussed. It is concluded that its presence in other cell membranes together with a low intracellular Cl- concentration would explain why the pH in the cytoplasm is lower than that of the blood, and why permeable carboxylate anions do not accumulate within the cell when added from outside.     

Metabolism of pyruvate by isolated rat mesenteric lymphocytes, lymphocyte mitochondria and isolated mouse macrophages.

1. The activities of pyruvate dehydrogenase in rat lymphocytes and mouse macrophages are much lower than those of the key enzymes of glycolysis and glutaminolysis. However, the rates of utilization of pyruvate (at 2 mM), from the incubation medium, are not markedly lower than the rate of utilization of glucose by incubated lymphocytes or that of glutamine by incubated macrophages. This suggests that the low rate of oxidation of pyruvate produced from either glucose or glutamine in these cells is due to the high capacity of lactate dehydrogenase, which competes with pyruvate dehydrogenase for pyruvate. 2. Incubation of either macrophages or lymphocytes with dichloroacetate had no effect on the activity of subsequently isolated pyruvate dehydrogenase; incubation of mitochondria isolated from lymphocytes with dichloroacetate had no effect on the rate of conversion of [1-14C]pyruvate into 14CO2, and the double-reciprocal plot of [1-14C]pyruvate concentration against rate of 14CO2 production was linear. In contrast, ADP or an uncoupling agent increased the rate of 14CO2 production from [1-14C]pyruvate by isolated lymphocyte mitochondria. These data suggest either that pyruvate dehydrogenase is primarily in the a form or that pyruvate dehydrogenase in these cells is not controlled by an interconversion cycle, but by end-product inhibition by NADH and/or acetyl-CoA. 3. The rate of conversion of [3-14C]pyruvate into CO2 was about 15% of that from [1-14C]pyruvate in isolated lymphocytes, but was only 1% in isolated lymphocyte mitochondria. The inhibitor of mitochondrial pyruvate transport, alpha-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamate, inhibited both [1-14C]- and [3-14C]-pyruvate conversion into 14CO2 to the same extent, and by more than 80%. 4. Incubations of rat lymphocytes with concanavalin A had no effect on the rate of conversion of [1-14C]pyruvate into 14CO2, but increased the rate of conversion of [3-14C]pyruvate into 14CO2 by about 50%. This suggests that this mitogen causes a stimulation of the activity of pyruvate carboxylase.     

Pyruvate transport by thermogenic-tissue mitochondria.

1. Mitochondria isolated from the thermogenic spadices of Arum maculatum and Sauromatum guttatum plants oxidized external NADH, succinate, citrate, malate, 2-oxoglutarate and pyruvate without the need to add exogenous cofactors. 2. Oxidation of substrates was virtually all via the alternative oxidase, the cytochrome pathway constituting only 10-20% of the total activity, depending on the stage of spadix development. 3. During later stages of spadix development, pyruvate oxidation was enhanced by the addition of aspartate. This was caused by acetyl-CoA condensing with oxaloacetate, produced from pyruvate/aspartate transamination, and so decreasing feedback inhibition of pyruvate dehydrogenase. 4. Pyruvate oxidation was inhibited by the long-chain acid maleimides AM5-11, but not by those with shorter polymethylene side groups, AM1-4. 5. The alpha-cyanocinnamate derivatives UK5099 [alpha-cyano-beta-(1-phenylindol-3-yl)acrylate] and CHCA [alpha-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamate] inhibited pyruvate-dependent O2 consumption and the carrier-mediated uptake of pyruvate across the mitochondrial inner membrane. Characteristics of non-competitive inhibition were observed for CHCA, whereas for UK5099 the results were more complex, suggesting a very low rate of dissociation of the inhibitor-carrier complex. 6. A comparison of the values of Vmax. and Km for oxidation and transport suggested that it was the latter which controls the overall rate of pyruvate oxidation by mitochondria from both tissues.     

The r?le of mitochondrial pyruvate transport in the stimulation by glucagon and phenylephrine of gluconeogenesis from L-lactate in isolated rat hepatocytes.

The sensitivity of glucose production from L-lactate by isolated liver cells from starved rats to inhibition by alpha-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamate was studied. A small percentage of the maximal rate of gluconeogenesis was insensitive to inhibition by alpha-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamate, and evidence is presented to show that this is due to pyruvate entry into the mitochondria as alanine. After subtraction of this rate, Dixon plots of the reciprocal of the rate of gluconeogenesis against inhibitor concentration were linear both in the absence and presence of glucagon, phenylephrine or valinomycin, each of which stimulated gluconeogenesis by 30-50%. Pyruvate kinase activity was decreased by glucagon, but not by phenylephrine or valinomycin. Inhibition of gluconeogenesis by quinolinate (inhibitor of phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase) or monochloroacetate (probably inhibiting pyruvate carboxylation) caused a significant deviation from linearity of the Dixon plot obtained with alpha-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamate. Amytal, however, inhibited gluconeogenesis without affecting the linearity of this plot. These data, coupled with a computer simulation study, suggest that pyruvate transport may control gluconeogenesis from L-lactate and that hormones may stimulate this process through an effect on the respiratory chain. An additional role for pyruvate kinase and pyruvate carboxylase is quite compatible with the data presented.     

Interaction of oxamate with the gluconeogenic pathway in rat liver

Oxamate, a structural analog of pyruvate, known as a potent inhibitor of lactic dehydrogenase, lactic dehydrogenase, produces an inhibition of gluconeogenic flux in isolated perfused rat liver or hepatocyte suspensions from low concentrations of pyruvate (less than 0.5 mM) or substrates yielding pyruvate. The following observations indicate that oxamate inhibits flux through pyruvate carboxylase: accumulation of substrates and decreased concentration of all metabolic intermediates beyond pyruvate; decreased levels of aspartate, glutamate, and alanine; and enhanced ketone body production, which is a sensitive indicator of decreased mitochondrial free oxaloacetate levels. The decreased pyruvate carboxylase flux does not seem to be the result of a direct inhibitory action of oxamate on this enzyme but is secondary to a decreased rate of pyruvate entry into the mitochondria. This assumption is based on the following observations: Above 0.4 mM pyruvate, no significant inhibitory effect of oxamate on gluconeogenesis was observed. The competitive nature of oxamate inhibition is in conflict with its effect on isolated pyruvate carboxylase which is noncompetitive for pyruvate. Fatty acid oxidation was effective in stimulating gluconeogenesis in the presence of oxamate only at concentrations of pyruvate above 0.4 mM. Since only at low pyruvate concentrations its entry into the mitochondria occurs via the monocarboxylate translocator, from these observations it follows that pyruvate transport across the mitochondrial membrane, and not its carboxylation, is the first nonequilibrium step in the gluconeogenic pathway. In the presence of oxamate, fatty acid oxidation inhibited gluconeogenesis from lactate, alanine, and low pyruvate concentrations (less than 0.5 mM), and the rate of transfer of reducing equivalents to the cytosol was significantly decreased. Whether fatty acids stimulate or inhibit gluconeogenesis appears to correlate with the rate of flux through pyruvate carboxylase which ultimately seems to rely on pyruvate availability. Unless adequate rates of oxaloacetate formation are maintained, the shift of the mitochondrial NAD couple to a more reduced state during fatty acid oxidation seems to decrease mitochondrial oxaloacetate resulting in a decreased rate of transfer of carbon and reducing power to the cytosol.     

The effects of pyruvate concentration, dichloroacetate and alpha-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamate on gluconeogenesis, ketogenesis and [3-hydroxybutyrate]/[3-oxobutyrate] ratios in isolated rat hepatocytes.

1. In isolated rat hepatocytes incubated with pyruvate, ketogenesis increased with increasing pyruvate concentrations and decreased under the influence of 1 mM-alpha-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamate, a known inhibitor of pyruvate transport. Ketogenesis from pyruvate was higher by 30% in hepatocytes prepared from starved than from fed rats. 2. With pyruvate as substrate, 2 mM-dichloroacetate had no effect on ketogenesis of starved-rat hepatocytes, but increased ketogenesis of fed-rat hepatocytes to the 'starved' value. Gluconeogenesis from pyruvate, lactate and alanine, but not from glycerol, was inhibited by dichloroacetate. Both increased ketogenesis and decreased gluconeogenesis may result from an inhibition of pyruvate carboxylase by dichloroacetate. 3. Mitochondria were rapidly isolated from incubated hepatocytes, and [3-hydroxybutyrate]/[3-oxobutyrate] ratios were measured in the mitochondrial pellet ('mitochondrial' ratios) and in whole-cell suspensions ('total' ratios). Increasing pyruvate concentrations increased mitochondrial and decreased total ratios. In the presence of pyruvate (2 to 10 mM), dichloroacetate decreased mitochondrial and increased total ratios.     

A re-evaluation of the role of mitochondrial pyruvate transport in the hormonal control of rat liver mitochondrial pyruvate metabolism.

The inhibitor of mitochondrial pyruvate transport alpha-cyano-beta-(1-phenylindol-3-yl)-acrylate was used to inhibit progressively pyruvate carboxylation by liver mitochondria from control and glucagon-treated rats. The data showed that, contrary to our previous conclusions [Halestrap (1978) Biochem. J. 172, 389-398], pyruvate transport could not regulate metabolism under these conditions. This was confirmed by measuring the intramitochondrial pyruvate concentration, which almost equilibrated with the extramitochondrial pyruvate concentration in control mitochondria, but was significantly decreased in mitochondria from glucagon-treated rats, where rates of pyruvate metabolism were elevated. Computer-simulation studies explain how this is compatible with linear Dixon plots of the inhibition of pyruvate metabolism by alpha-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamate. Parallel measurements of the mitochondrial membrane potential by using [3H]triphenylmethylphosphonium ions showed that it was elevated by about 3 mV after pretreatment of rats with both glucagon and phenylephrine. There was no significant change in the transmembrane pH gradient. It is shown that the increase in pyruvate metabolism can be explained by a stimulation of the respiratory chain, producing an elevation in the protonmotive force and a consequent rise in the intramitochondrial ATP/ADP ratio, which in turn increases pyruvate carboxylase activity. Mild inhibition of the respiratory chain with Amytal reversed the effects of hormone treatment on mitochondrial pyruvate metabolism and ATP concentrations, but not on citrulline synthesis. The significance of these observations for the hormonal regulation of gluconeogenesis from L-lactate in vivo is discussed.     

Pyruvate transport in isolated cardiac mitochondria from two species of amphibian exhibiting dissimilar aerobic scope: Bufo marinus and Rana catesbeiana

Cardiac mitochondria were isolated from Bufo marinus and Rana catesbeiana, two species of amphibian whose cardiovascular systems are adapted to either predominantly aerobic or glycolytic modes of locomotion. Mitochondrial oxidative capacity was compared using VO2 max and respiratory control ratios in the presence of a variety of substrates including pyruvate, lactate, oxaloacetate, beta-hydroxybutyrate, and octanoyl-carnitine. B. marinus cardiac mitochondria exhibited VO2 max values twice that of R. catesbeiana cardiac mitochondria when oxidizing carbohydrate substrates. Pyruvate transport was measured via a radiolabeled-tracer assay in isolated B. marinus and R. catesbeiana cardiac mitochondria. Time-course experiments described both alpha-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamate-sensitive (MCT-like) and phenylsuccinate-sensitive pyruvate uptake mechanisms in both species. Pyruvate uptake by the MCT-like transporter was enhanced in the presence of a pH gradient, whereas the phenylsuccinate-sensitive transporter was inhibited. Notably, anuran cardiac mitochondria exhibited activities of lactate dehydrogenase and pyruvate carboxylase. The presence of both transporters on the inner mitochondrial membrane affords the net uptake of monocarboxylates including pyruvate, beta-hydroxybutyrate, and lactate; the latter potentially indicating the presence of a lactate/pyruvate shuttle allowing oxidation of extramitochondrial NADH. Intramitochondrial lactate dehydrogenase and pyruvate carboxylase enables lactate to be oxidized to pyruvate or converted to anaplerotic oxaloacetate. Kinetics of the MCT-like transporter differed significantly between the two species, suggesting differences in aerobic scope may be in part attributable to differences in mitochondrial carbohydrate utilization.     

Specific inhibition of pyruvate transport in rat liver mitochondria and human erythrocytes by α-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamate (Short Communication)

alpha-Cyano-4-hydroxycinnamate greatly inhibits the transport of pyruvate but not that of acetate or butyrate in liver mitochondria and erythrocytes. In the latter, lactate uptake is also inhibited. It is concluded that a specific carrier is involved in membrane transport of pyruvate and that the plasma-membrane carrier may also be involved in lactate transport.     

The stimulation of mitochondrial pyruvate carboxylation after dexamethasone treatment of rats.

Treatment of rats for 3 h with dexamethasone was shown to stimulate both pyruvate carboxylation and decarboxylation in the subsequently isolated mitochondria. The effect of hormone treatment on pyruvate carboxylation was also apparent in liver homogenates assayed within minutes of killing the animal and was independent of the temperature at which the assay was performed, suggesting that it was not an artifact of the mitochondrial preparation procedure. The stimulation of both aspects of pyruvate metabolism in the intact organelle was independent of the induction of either pyruvate carboxylase or pyruvate dehydrogenase. Similarly, there was no change in the percentage of pyruvate dehydrogenase in the active form, indicating that the effect of steroid treatment on pyruvate oxidation was not via changes in the degree of phosphorylation of the enzyme. Adrenalectomizing the animals for a period of 14 days before the experiment had no effect on either parameter. Glucocorticoid treatment of the animals increased the rate of pyruvate uptake into the mitochondria, as measured by the titration of pyruvate metabolism with alpha-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamate, a specific inhibitor of the pyruvate translocator. It also increased the intramitochondrial concentrations of acetyl-CoA and ATP and led to an elevated [ATP]/[ADP] ratio within the mitochondria. It is suggested that both enzymes of pyruvate metabolism exist in the mitochondria under considerable restraint and that glucocorticoids act to relieve this restraint by alterations in substrate supply and the intramitochondrial concentrations of effector molecules.     

Pyruvate metabolism in castor-bean mitochondria.

We report the isolation of mitochondria from the endosperm of castor beans (Ricinus communis). These mitochondria oxidized succinate, external NADH, malate and pyruvate with respiratory-control and ADP/O ratios consistent with those found previously with mitochondria from other plant sources. The mitochondria exhibited considerable sensitivity to the electron-transport-chain inhibitors antimycin A and cyanide when oxidizing succinate and external NADH. Pyruvate-dependent O2 uptake was relatively insensitive to these inhibitors, although the residual O2 uptake could be inhibited by salicylhydroxamic acid. We conclude that a cyanide-insensitive alternative terminal oxidase is functional in these mitochondria. However, electrons from the succinate dehydrogenase or external NADH dehydrogenase seem to have no access to this pathway. There is little interconnection between the salicylhydroxamic acid-sensitive and cyanide-sensitive pathways of electron transport. alpha-Cyanocinnamate and its analogues, compound UK5099 [alpha-cyano-beta-(1-phenylindol-3-yl)acrylate] and alpha-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamate, were all found to be potent non-competitive inhibitors of pyruvate oxidation in castor-bean mitochondria. The accumulation of pyruvate by castor-bean mitochondria was determined by using a silicone-oil-centrifugation technique. The accumulation was shown to observe Michaelis-Menten kinetics, with a Km for pyruvate of 0.10 mM and a Vmax. of 0.95 nmol/min per mg of mitochondrial protein. However, the observed rates of pyruvate accumulation were insufficient to account for the pyruvate oxidation rates found in the oxygen-electrode studies. We were able to demonstrate that this is due to the immediate export of the accumulated radiolabel in the form of malate and citrate. Compound UK5099 inhibited the accumulation of [2-14C]pyruvate by castor-bean mitochondria at concentrations similar to those required to inhibit pyruvate oxidation.     

Initial rates of pyruvate transport in mitochondria determined by an "inhibitor-stop" technique.

An "inhibitor-stop" technique has been developed for measuring initial rates of pyruvate transport into mitochondria. The technique uses alpha-cyano-3-hydroxycinnamate as the inhibitor and separates the mitochondria from the radioactive medium by Millipore filtration. Observed rates depend on availability of hydroxyl and other exchangeable anions within the mitochondrial matrix.     

Identification and characterisation of a new class of highly specific and potent inhibitors of the mitochondrial pyruvate carrier

Two novel thiazolidine compounds, GW604714X and GW450863X, were found to be potent inhibitors of mitochondrial respiration supported by pyruvate but not other substrates. Direct measurement of pyruvate transport into rat liver and yeast mitochondria confirmed that these agents inhibited the mitochondrial pyruvate carrier (MPC) with K(i) values <0.1 muM. Inhibitor titrations of pyruvate-dependent respiration by heart mitochondria gave values (+/-S.E.) for the concentration of inhibitor binding sites (pmol per mg protein) and their K(i) (nM) of 56.0+/-0.9 and 0.057+/-0.010 nM for the more hydrophobic GW604714X; for GW450863X the values were 59.9+/-4.6 and 0.60+/-0.12 nM. [(3)H]-methoxy-GW450863X binding was also used to determine the MPC content of the heart, kidney, liver and brain mitochondria giving values of 56, 40, 26 and 20 pmol per mg protein respectively. Binding to yeast mitochondria was <10% of that in rat liver mitochondria, consistent with the slow rate of pyruvate transport into yeast mitochondria. [(3)H]-methoxy-GW450863X binding was inhibited by GW604714X and by the established MPC inhibitor, UK5099. The absorbance spectra of GW450863X and GW604714X were markedly changed by the addition of beta-mercaptoethanol suggesting that the novel inhibitors, like alpha-cyanocinnamate, possess an activated double bond that attacks a critical cysteine residue on the MPC. However, no labelled protein was detected following SDS-PAGE suggesting that the covalent modification is reversible. GW604714X and GW450863X inhibited l-lactate transport by the plasma membrane monocarboxylate transporter MCT1, but at concentrations more than four orders of magnitude greater than the MPC.     

Stimulation of pyruvate transport in metabolizing mitochondria through changes in the transmembrane pH gradient induced by glucagon treatment of rats.

Glucagon treatment of rats allowed the isolation of liver mitochondria with enhanced rates of pyruvate metabolism measured in either sucrose or KCl media. No change in the activity of the pyruvate carrier itself was apparent, but under metabolizing conditions, use of the inhibitor of pyruvate transport, alpha-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamate, demonstrated that pyruvate transport limited the rate of pyruvate metabolism. The maximum rate of transport under metabolizing conditions was enhanced by glucagon treatment. Problems involved in measuring the transmembrane pH gradient under metabolizing conditions are discussed and a variety of techniques are used to estimate the matrix pH. From the distribution of methylamine, ammonia and D-lactate and the Ki for inhibition by alpha-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamate it is concluded that the matrix is more acid than the medium and that the pH of the matrix rises after glucagon treatment. The increase in matrix pH stimulates pyruvate transport. The membrane potential, ATP concentration and O2 uptake were also increased under metabolizing conditions in glucagon-treated mitochondria. These changes were correlated with a stimulation of the respiratory chain which can be observed in uncoupled mitochondria [Yamazaki (1975) J. Biol. Chem. 250, 7924--7930]. The mitochondrial Mg2+ content (mean +/- S.E.M.) was increased from 38.8 +/- 1.2 (n = 26) to 47.5 +/- 2.0 (n = 26) ng-atoms/mg by glucagon and the K+ content from 126.7 +/- 10.3 (n = 19) ng-atoms/mg. This may represent a change in membrane potential induced by glucagon in vivo. The physiological significance of these results in the control of gluconeogenesis is discussed.     

Identification of the protein responsible for pyruvate transport into rat liver and heart mitochondria by specific labelling with [3H]N-phenylmaleimide.

1. N-Phenylmaleimide irreversibly inhibits pyruvate transport into rat heart and liver mitochondria to a much greater extent than does N-ethylmaleimide, iodoacetate or bromopyruvate. alpha-Cyanocinnamate protects the pyruvate transporter from attack by this thiol-blocking reagent. 2. In both heart and liver mitochondria alpha-cyanocinnamate diminishes labelling by [3H]N-phenylmaleimide of a membrane protein of subunit mol.wt. 15000 on sodium dodecyl sulphate/polyacrylamide-gel electrophoresis. 3. Exposure of mitochondrial to unlabelled N-phenylmaleimide in the presence of alpha-cyanocinnamate, followed by removal of alpha-cyanocinnamate and exposure to [3H]N-phenylmaleimide, produced specific labelling of the same protein. 4. Both labelling and kinetic experiments with inhibitors gave values for the approximate amount of carrier present in liver and heart mitochondria of 100 and 450 pmol/mg of mitochondrial protein respectively. 5. The turnover numbers for net pyruvate transport and pyruvate exchange at 0 degrees C were 6 and 200 min-1 respectively.     

Transport of 2-oxoisocaproate in isolated hepatocytes and liver mitochondria

The transport of 2-oxoisocaproate into isolated hepatocytes and liver mitochondria of rat was studied using [U-14C]2-oxoisocaproate and the silicone oil filtration procedure. 2-Oxoisocaproate uptake by hepatocytes was composed of: rapid adsorption, unmediated diffusion and carrier-mediated transport. The carrier-mediated transport was strongly inhibited by 4,4'-diisothiocyano-2,2'-stilbenedisulphonic acid and p-chloromercuribenzoate, was less sensitive to alpha-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamate and insensitive to p-chloromercuriphenylsulphonate. Other 2-oxo acids: pyruvate, 2-oxoisovalerate and 2-oxo-3-methylvalerate, were also inhibitory. The kinetic parameters of the carrier-mediated transport were Km 30.6 mM and Vmax 23.4 nmol/min per mg wet wt, at 37 degrees C. It is concluded that at its low, physiological, concentration, 2-oxoisocaproate penetrates the hepatocyte membrane mainly by unmediated diffusion. The uptake of 2-oxoisocaproate by isolated liver mitochondria was partly inhibited by alpha-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamate, the inhibitor of mitochondrial monocarboxylate carrier. The remaining uptake was linearly dependent on 2-oxoisocaproate concentration and represented unmediated diffusion. The carrier-mediated transport exhibited the following kinetic parameters: Km 0.47 mM, Vmax 1.0 nmol/min per mg protein at 6 degrees C; and Km 0.075 mM and Vmax about 8 nmol/min per mg protein at 37 degrees C.