Coenzyme A and carnitine distribution in normal and ischemic hearts.

The distribution of coenzyme A and carnitine between the mitochondrial and cytosolic compartments was determined in rat heart ventricular muscle. The CoA and carnitine levels of homogenate, mitochondrial, and postmitochondrial fractions were determined in nonperfused hearts and in hearts that were perfused under control and ischemic conditions. Using the mitochondrial marker enzymes, citrate synthase and cytochrome c oxidase, the cellular content of mitochondrial protein was determined to be 53 +/- 1.0 (nonperfused), 53.5 +/- 1.5 (control), and 58.1 +/- 2.2 (ischemic) mg/g of wet heart muscle. These values were used to calculate the contribution of the CoA and carnitine located in the mitochondrial compartment to the total cellular levels of CoA and carnitine. Under both control and ischemic conditions, approximately 95% of the cellular CoA was mitochondrial. The percentage of the total cellular carnitine associated with the mitochondria increased from 8 to 9% in nonperfused and control hearts to 25% during ischemia, indicating that a net transfer of carnitine occurred from the cytosol to the mitochondrial matrix.