STUDIES ON THE INTRACELLULAR-LOCALIZATION OF ACETYL-COA CARBOXYLASE

The present work was performed to identify the sub cellular localizati on of hepatic acetyl-CoA carboxylase (ACC), Cellular organelles involv ed in fatty acid oxidation that contain a malonyl-CoA sensitive carnit ine palmitoyltransferase (CPT) activity or that are linked to the cont rol of this activity were analysed for the presence of ACC, No signifi cant amount of ACC was observed in the mitochondrial fraction prepared from isolated rat hepatocytes, Furthermore, no association of ACC act ivity and mass with isolated hepatic peroxisomes could be detected. In cubation of isolated hepatocytes with compounds known to affect the i ntegrity of the cytoskeleton like okadaic acid or taxol indicates that ACC is associated with this subcellular structure of the hepatocyte. Such association may allow for efficient regulation of CPT activity an d thus of fatty acid oxidation. (C) 1997 Academic Press.