Spectrophotometric Studies of Acyl-coenzyme A Synthetases of Rat Liver Mitochondria

1. Deca-2,4,6,8-tetraenoic acid is a substrate for both ATP-specific (EC 6.2.1.2 or 3) and GTP-specific (EC 6.2.1.-) acyl-CoA synthetases of rat liver mitochondria. The enzymic synthesis of decatetraenoyl-CoA results in new spectral characteristics. The difference spectrum for the acyl-CoA minus free acid has a maximum at 376nm with epsilon(mM) 34. Isosbestic points are at 345nm and 440nm. 2. The acylation of CoA by decatetraenoate in mitochondrial suspensions can be continuously measured with a dual-wavelength spectrophotometer. 3. By using this technique, three distinct types of acyl-CoA synthetase activity were demonstrated in rat liver mitochondria. One of these utilized added CoA and ATP, required added Mg(2+) and corresponded to a previously described ;external' acyl-CoA synthetase. The other two acyl-CoA synthetase activities utilized intramitochondrial CoA and did not require added Mg(2+). Of these two ;internal' acyl-CoA synthetases, one was insensitive to uncoupling agents, was inhibited by phosphate or arsenate, and corresponded to the GTP-specific enzyme. The other corresponded to the ATP-specific enzyme. 4. Atractylate inhibited the activity of the two internal acyl-CoA synthetases only when the energy source was added ATP. 5. The amount of intramitochondrial CoA acylated by decatetraenoate was independent of whether the internal ATP-specific or GTP-specific acyl-CoA synthetase was active. It is concluded that these two internal acyl-CoA synthetases have access to the same intramitochondrial pool of CoA. 6. The amount of intramitochondrial CoA that could be acylated with decatetraenoate was decreased by the addition of palmitoyl-dl-carnitine, 2-oxoglutarate, or pyruvate. These observations indicated that pyruvate dehydrogenase (EC 1.2.4.1), oxoglutarate dehydrogenase (EC 1.2.4.2), carnitine palmitoyltransferase (EC 2.3.1.-), citrate synthase (EC 4.1.3.7), and succinyl-CoA synthetase (EC 6.2.1.4) all have access to the same intramitochondrial pool of CoA as do the two internal acyl-CoA synthetases.