Increased pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase activity in response to sepsis.

The effect of sterile inflammation and sepsis on the proportion of active pyruvate dehydrogenase complex (PDH) in mitochondria isolated from skeletal muscle has been investigated. The proportion of active PDH in mitochondria isolated from septic animals was significantly reduced compared with control under all incubation conditions examined, even in the presence of inhibitors of the PDH kinase. There was no significant difference between control and sterile inflammation in any of the incubations examined. The rate constant for ATP-dependent inactivation of the PDH complex in mitochondrial extracts from control animals was -0.42 min-1 (r = 0.993; P less than 0.001) and was not altered in mitochondrial extracts from sterile inflammatory animals (-0.43 min-1; r = 0.999; P less than 0.001). However, rate constants for inactivation in septic animals was significantly increased over twofold to -1.08 min-1 (r = 0.987; P less than 0.001) (P less than 0.001 vs. control or sterile inflammation). In the presence of inhibitors of the PDH kinase reaction (2.5 mM pyruvate or 1 mM dichloroacetate), inactivation of PDH after addition of ATP was significantly greater in mitochondrial extracts from septic than either control or sterile inflammatory animals. These results suggest that sepsis, but not sterile inflammation, induces a stable factor in skeletal muscle mitochondria that increased PDH kinase activity.