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N-Bromosuccinimide-induced electrophilic multicomponent reaction has been applied to the synthesis of Reboxetine intermediate, a highly potent selective norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor. By simply changing the olefinic partner, the synthesis of a carnitine acetyltransferase inhibitor, which contains a 2,6,6-trisubstituted morpholine system, can be accomplished.

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Phenotypic plasticity occurs prevalently and plays a vital role in adaptive evolution. However, the underlying molecular mechanisms responsible for the expression of alternate phenotypes remain unknown. Here, a density-dependent phase polyphenism of Locusta migratoria was used as the study model to identify key signaling molecules regulating the expression of phenotypic plasticity. Metabolomic analysis, using high-performance liquid chromatography and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry, showed that solitarious and gregarious locusts have distinct metabolic profiles in hemolymph. A total of 319 metabolites, many of which are involved in lipid metabolism, differed significantly in concentration between the phases. In addition, the time course of changes in the metabolic profiles of locust hemolymph that accompany phase transition was analyzed. Carnitine and its acyl derivatives, which are involved in the lipid ß-oxidation process, were identified as key differential metabolites that display robust correlation with the time courses of phase transition. RNAi silencing of two key enzymes from the carnitine system, carnitine acetyltransferase and palmitoyltransferase, resulted in a behavioral transition from the gregarious to solitarious phase and the corresponding changes of metabolic profiles. In contrast, the injection of exogenous acetylcarnitine promoted the acquisition of gregarious behavior in solitarious locusts. These results suggest that carnitines mediate locust phase transition possibly through modulating lipid metabolism and influencing the nervous system of the locusts.

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Carnitine acetyltransferase (CrAT; EC 2.3.1.7) catalyzes the reversible transfer of acetyl groups between acetyl-coenzyme A (acetyl-CoA) and L-carnitine; it also regulates the cellular pool of CoA and the availability of activated acetyl groups. In this study, biochemical measurements, saturation transfer difference (STD) nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy, and molecular docking were applied to give insights into the CrAT binding of a synthetic inhibitor, the cardioprotective drug mildronate (3-(2,2,2-trimethylhydrazinium)-propionate). The obtained results show that mildronate inhibits CrAT in a competitive manner through binding to the carnitine binding site, not the acetyl-CoA binding site. The bound conformation of mildronate closely resembles that of carnitine except for the orientation of the trimethylammonium group, which in the mildronate molecule is exposed to the solvent. The dissociation constant of the mildronate CrAT complex is approximately 0.1 mM, and the K(i) is 1.6 mM. The results suggest that the cardioprotective effect of mildronate might be partially mediated by CrAT inhibition and concomitant regulation of cellular energy metabolism pathways.

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We evaluated the activities of carnitine palmitoyltransferase (CPT), carnitine octanoyltransferase (COT), and carnitine acetyltransferase (CAT) in the frontal cortex, temporal cortex, parietal cortex, hippocampus, and cerebellum of Alzheimer disease (AD) patients and normal human brains. There were no significant differences in total CPT activity, its inhibition by malonyl-CoA, the effect of the detergent Triton X-100 on CPT activity, COT activity, and CAT activity in any of the brain regions examined whether activities were expressed as grams of wet weight or corrected for noncollagen protein content. The addition of Triton X-100 increased CAT activity by 50%. Our results suggest that there is no defect of fatty acid transport within the AD brain cell. Total CPT activity, COT activity, and CAT activity are not affected in AD nor is the ratio of CPT I to CPT II altered in the AD versus the normal human brain.

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We studied the influence of Etomoxir on fat and carbohydrate oxidation, and the influence of these changes on insulin sensitivity in type 2 diabetic patients. Etomoxir is an oxirane carboxylic acid derivative that specifically inactivates carnitine-acyltransferase I (CAT I, EC: 2.3.1.21), the key enzyme for the transport of long-chain acyl-CoA compounds into the mitochondria. Thus, oxidation of fatty acids should be reduced by this drug and glucose utilisation be increased according to the Randle mechanism. In order to test this hypothesis, we measured oxidative and non-oxidative glucose utilisation using the euglycaemic hyperinsulinaemic clamp technique, the isotope dilution mass spectrometry (IDMS) method with stable isotopes (6,6-D2-glucose) and indirect calorimetry. The clamps lasted 5 hours, indirect calorimetry was performed during the last hour and calculations of glucose disposal were based on steady state conditions during the last 30 minutes. Twelve type 2 diabetic patients were treated with 100 mg etomoxir/per day for 3 days in this placebo-controlled, randomized, double-blind study. Treatment resulted in a significant increase in carbohydrate oxidation (from 72 to 113 g/24 h, p = 0.039), decrease in fat oxidation (from 139 to 114 g/24 h, p = 0.037), and decrease of the glucose appearance rate (RA) in the basal state (from 1.85 to 1.70 mg/kg min., p = 0.014). During the euglycaemic clamp neither RA (3.30 and 3.20 mg/kg min., p = 0.471) nor the glucose infusion rate (4.28 and 4.53 mg/kg min., p = 0.125) showed significant changes. In addition, no significant changes in glucose and fat oxidation were detected during the hyperinsulinaemic clamp. Under basal conditions non-oxidative glucose utilisation was decreased by etomoxir (1.26 and 0.80 mg/ kg x min). Thus, we could demonstrate a decrease in fat and increase in glucose oxidation by etomoxir, but non-oxidative glucose utilisation was decreased. No significant changes could be demonstrated under clamp conditions.

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The effect of certain sulfhydryl reagents and metal ions were studied on the carnitine acetyltransferase (CAT) activity from the skeletal muscle of the Arabian camel (Camelus dromedarius). DTNB and iodoacetamide caused concentration and time dependent inhibition of CAT activity. The inhibition seen with these sulfhydryl reagents could be protected with prior incubation of the enzyme with acetyl-Co A, suggesting that these reagents might interact with the same site. Among the various metal ions tested, Cu2+, Zn2+ and Hg2+ caused total inhibition at very low concentrations, while, Mn2+, Mo6+ and Co2+ caused between 32-52% inhibition at 10 mM concentrations. Alkali earth divalent metals Mg2+ and Ca2+ caused less than 15% inhibition at this concentration. These metal ions are probably interacting at certain nucleophilic groups in the enzyme thus disrupting its tertiary structure.

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Isolated rat cerebral cortex cells were able to accumulate L-carnitine and this process was competitively inhibited by 1 mM gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) with a shift of Km from 7.8 +/- 1.9 mM to 14.6 +/- 4.0 mM. Addition of GABA also affected distribution of carnitine derivatives. The decrease of acetylcarnitine level by 1.6 fold was correlated with the inhibition of carnitine acetyltransferase (1.77 times). A postulated involvement of this enzyme in delivering acetyl moieties for acetylcholine synthesis would suggest a negative feedback between GABA and the level of acetylcholine.

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Choline acetyltransferase catalyzes the synthesis of acetylcholine from choline and acetylcoenzyme A (ACoA) in both nervous and non-nervous tissues. Carnitine acetyltransferase occurs in several tissues and transfers acetyl groups from ACoA to carnitine forming acetylcarnitine and exhibits weak choline acetyltransferase activity. Several haloacetylcholines and haloacetylcarnitines were synthesized to develop selective inhibitors of choline acetyltransferase and carnitine acetyltransferase. Acetylcholine is a transmitter for some presynaptic neurons and/or amacrine cells in retina. Selective inhibitors of choline acetyltransferase and carnitine acetyltransferase were used in the evaluation of choline acetyltransferase and carnitine acetyltransferase activities in the rat retina. Choline acetyltransferase and carnitine acetyltransferase activities were assayed by transferring of [14C]acetyl group from [14C]ACoA to choline or carnitine and estimating [14C]-acetylcholine or [14C]acetylcarnitine. This study gave the following results: (a) Bromoacetylcholine (BrACh) was a selective inhibitor of purified choline acetyltransferase (I50, 2.2 microM); (b) (R)-bromoacetylcarnitine [(R)-BrACa] was more potent for inhibiting purified carnitine acetyltransferase (I50, 4 microM) than purified choline acetyltransferase (I50, 46 microM); (c) Rat retinal sonicate gave choline acetyltransferase activity of 98 +/- 6 nmol of ACh formed/mg/10 min. When the carnitine acetyltransferase was completely inhibited by (R)-BrACa, the activity for choline acetyltransferase decreased to 47 +/- 1 nmol, and this decrease was possibly due to the formation of some [14C]acetylcholine by carnitine acetyltransferase. The net retinal choline acetyltransferase activity was 51 nmol acetylcholine/mg protein/10 min; (d) Rat retinal sonicate contained carnitine acetyltransferase activity of 102 +/- 7 nmol acetylcarnitine formed/mg protein/10 min. This was not altered by inhibition of choline acetyltransferase with BrACh. This means that choline acetyltransferase did not use carnitine as a substrate. Choline acetyltransferase and carnitine acetyltransferase activities did not change after dialysis of retinal sonicates at 4 degrees C for 24 hrs. These observations suggest that BrACh and (R)-BrACa are useful for assessing the correct values for choline acetyltransferase and carnitine acetyltransferase activities in retinal tissues.

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Fatty acid oxidation was studied in the presence of inhibitors of carnitine palmitoyltransferase I (CPT I), in normal and in peroxisome-proliferated rat hepatocytes. The oxidation decreased in mitochondria, as expected, but in peroxisomes it increased. These two effects were seen, in variable proportions, with (+)-decanoylcarnitine, 2-tetradecylglycidic acid (TDGA) and etomoxir. The decrease in mitochondrial oxidation (ketogenesis) affected saturated fatty acids with 12 or more carbon atoms, whereas the increase in peroxisomal oxidation (H2O2 production) affected saturated fatty acids with 8 or more carbon atoms. The peroxisomal increase was sensitive to chlorpromazine, a peroxisomal inhibitor. To study possible mechanisms, palmitoyl-, octanoyl- and acetyl-carnitine acyltransferase activities were measured, in homogenates and in subcellular fractions from control and TDGA-treated cells. The palmitoylcarnitine acyltransferase was inhibited, as expected, but the octanoyltransferase activity also decreased. The CoA derivative of TDGA was synthesized and tentatively identified as being responsible for inhibition of the octanoylcarnitine acyltransferase. These results show that inhibitors of the mitochondrial CPT I may also inhibit the peroxisomal octanoyl transferase; they also support the hypothesis that the octanoyltransferase has the capacity to control or regulate peroxisomal fatty acid oxidation.

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Carnitine acetyltransferase (CAT) catalyzes the reversible transfer of short chain (less than six carbons in length) acyl groups from acyl-CoA thioesters to form the corresponding acylcarnitines. This reaction has been suggested to be of importance in decreasing cellular content of acyl-CoA under conditions characterized by accumulation of poorly metabolized, potentially toxic acyl-CoAs. To study the importance of the CAT reaction, the effect of CAT inhibitors on rat hepatocyte metabolism in the presence of propionate was examined. Acetyl-DL-aminocarnitine inhibited [14C]propionylcarnitine accumulation by isolated hepatocytes incubated with [14C]propionate (1.0-10.0 mM). Inhibition of propionylcarnitine formation by acetyl-DL-aminocarnitine was concentration dependent and was not due to non-specific cellular toxicity as [14C]glucose formation from [14C]propionate, and [1-14C]pyruvate oxidation were unaffected by the CAT inhibitor. Inhibition of propionylcarnitine formation was increased by preincubating hepatocytes with acetyl-DL-aminocarnitine, suggesting competition for cellular uptake between carnitine and the inhibitor. Hemiacetylcartinium (HAC) and meso-2,6-bis(carboxymethyl)4,4-dimethylmorpholinium bromide (CMDM), potent inhibitors of CAT in broken cell systems, did not inhibit hepatocyte propionylcarnitine formation under the conditions evaluated. Propionate (5 mM) inhibited hepatocyte pyruvate (10 mM) oxidation, and this inhibition was partially reversed by 5 mM carnitine. Addition of 5.0 mM acetyl-DL-aminocarnitine abolished the stimulatory effect of carnitine on pyruvate oxidation in the presence of propionate. These studies establish that acetyl-DL-aminocarnitine inhibits intact hepatocyte CAT activity, and thus provide a useful probe of the role of CAT in cellular metabolism. CAT activity appears to be critical for carnitine-mediated reversal of propionate-induced inhibition of pyruvate oxidation.

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1. The effects of 3-, 4- and 5-thia-substituted fatty acids on mitochondrial and peroxisomal beta-oxidation have been investigated. When the sulphur atom is in the 4-position, the resulting thia-substituted fatty acid becomes a powerful inhibitor of beta-oxidation. 2. This inhibition cannot be explained in terms of simple competitive inhibition, a phenomenon which characterizes the inhibitory effects of 3- and 5-thia-substituted fatty acids. The inhibitory sites for 4-thia-substituted fatty acids are most likely to be the acyl-CoA dehydrogenase in mitochondria and the acyl-CoA oxidase in peroxisomes. 3. The inhibitory effect of 4-thia-substituted fatty acids is expressed both in vitro and in vivo. The effect in vitro is instantaneous, with up to 95% inhibition of palmitoylcarnitine oxidation. The effect in vivo, in contrast, is dose-dependent and increases with duration of treatment. 4. Pretreatment of rats with a 3-thia-substituted fatty acid rendered mitochondrial beta-oxidation less sensitive to inhibition by 4-thia-substituted fatty acids.

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beta-Aminocarnitine and its N-acetyl and N-palmitoyl amides were examined as inhibitors of carnitine acetyltransferase, carnitine palmitoyltransferase, and of fatty-acid oxidation in whole animals, tissues, and hepatic microsomal systems. Results were consistent with subsequent findings that aminocarnitine and palmitoylcarnitine have significant antiketogenic and hypoglycemic effects in experimental animals.

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Carnitine acetyltransferase is used in a radioenzymatic assay to measure the concentration of carnitine. While determining the concentration of carnitine in rat bile, we found that the apparent concentration increased as bile was diluted (6.7 +/- 1.0 and 66.6 +/- 9.4 nmol/ml in undiluted and 20-fold diluted bile, respectively). The present study was designed to investigate whether a component of bile inhibited carnitine acetyltransferase. Inhibition was evaluated by measuring carnitine concentration in bile or by determining the recovery of a known amount of carnitine in the presence of bile. Inhibitory activity was extractable in organic solvents, stable to heat and base treatments, resistant to trypsin and lipase digestions, and removable by cholestyramine, a bile acid-binding resin. These results suggested that the inhibitory activity was associated with bile acids. Direct evidence was obtained by showing a reduced detectability of carnitine in the presence of individual bile acids. Chenodeoxycholic acid was the most potent inhibitor. Inhibition was unrelated to the detergent properties of bile acids. Kinetic studies revealed that carnitine acetyltransferase was inhibited competitively by chenodeoxycholic acid with a Ki of 520 microM. Bile acids also interfered in the quantitation of carnitine in cholestatic plasma. Carnitine concentration in such plasma was underestimated (17.5 +/- 2.1 mmol/ml). Reduction of bile acid concentration by a 20-fold dilution of cholestatic plasma resulted in a 3-fold higher carnitine concentration (54.6 +/- 9.0 nmol/ml). Results demonstrate that, because of the inhibition of carnitine acetyltransferase by bile acids, the radioenzymatic assay will underestimate carnitine concentration in bile or in cholestatic plasma. Accurate measurement requires either the removal of bile acids or a marked reduction in their concentration.

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We have synthesized (2S,6R:2R,6S)-6-carboxymethyl-2-hydroxy-2-pentadecyl-4,4-dimethylmorp holinium bromide (hemipalmitoylcarnitinium, HPC) which is a conformationally restricted analog inhibitor of carnitine palmitoyltransferase (CPT; EC 2.3.1.21). rac-HPC inhibits catalytic activity in purified rat liver CPT. In the forward reaction, HPC competes with both (R)-carnitine (Ki(app) = 5.1 +/- 0.7 microM) and palmitoyl-CoA (Ki(app) = 21.5 +/- 4.9 microM). In the reverse reaction, inhibition by HPC is competitive with palmitoyl-(R)-carnitine (Ki(app) = 1.6 +/- 0.6 microM), but inhibition is uncompetitive with CoA. The forward reaction is also competitively inhibited by its product, palmitoyl-(R)-carnitine, Ki(app)'s 14.2 +/- 2.1 microM relative to (R)-carnitine and 8.7 +/- 2.6 microM relative to palmitoyl-CoA. rac-HPC is the most potent synthetic reversible inhibitor of purified CPT. HPC fails to inhibit carnitine acetyltransferase (CAT; EC 2.3.1.7). Palmitoylcholine also inhibits CPT in the forward reaction, competing with (R)-carnitine (Ki(app) = 18.6 +/- 4.5 microM) and with palmitoyl CoA (Ki(app) = 10.4 +/- 2.5 microM). Choline is not an effective CPT inhibitor. We have shown [R.D. Gandour et al. (1986) Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun. 138, 735-741] that hemiacetylcarnitinium inhibits CAT but not CPT. The combined data demonstrate further differences between the carnitine recognition sites in CPT and CAT.

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A choline acetyltransferase (ChA) inhibitor with an optimum combination of properties of potency, stability and membrane permeability is required to study several functional aspects of acetylcholine in nervous and non-nervous tissues. Therefore, 2-(alpha-naphthoyl)ethyltrimethylammonium iodide (alpha-NETA), 2-(beta-naphthoyl)ethyltrimethylammonium iodide (beta-NETA), 2-(9'-anthroyl)ethyltrimethylammonium iodide (9'-AETA) and their corresponding tertiary dimethylamine hydrochloride analogs (alpha-NEDA, beta-NEDA, 9'-AEDA) were synthesized and tested for their ChA inhibitory activities. The quaternary ammonium compounds were more potent inhibitors (150 in microM: alpha-NETA, 9; beta-NETA, 76; 9'-AETA, 32) than the corresponding tertiary compounds (150 in microM: alpha-NEDA, 63; beta-NEDA, 1400; 9'-AEDA, 77). The alpha-naphthyl moiety was preferable to the beta-naphthyl- or 9'-anthryl moieties for alignment with the enzyme for inhibition. alpha-NETA and alpha-NEDA exhibited adequate ChA inhibitory potencies for further pharmacological studies and localization of membrane bound ChA. They exhibited fluorescent characteristics of the alpha-naphthyl moiety. Their ChA inhibition was not reversible by dialysis. They were considerably more potent for inhibiting ChA than cholinesterases and carnitine acetyltransferase.

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In vivo administration of nicardipine, nifedipine and diltiazem, known as calcium antagonists, suppressed the clofibrate-evoked induction of activities of peroxisomal enzymes, such as the peroxisomal fatty acyl-CoA oxidizing system and carnitine acetyltransferase. The inhibition activity of nicardipine with respect to clofibrate induction of the two enzyme systems was 62 and 33%, respectively. Induction of the peroxisomal bifunctional protein, enoyl-CoA hydratase/3-hydroxyacyl-CoA dehydrogenase, by clofibrate was suppressed about 60% by nicardipine on analysis of the hepatic protein composition by SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. Other drugs also exhibited similar inhibitory activity. These results provide the first demonstration of calcium antagonists, e.g. nicardipine, nifedipine and diltiazem, acting as inhibitors of peroxisome proliferation in animals. Such drugs might become useful as tools for elucidating the mechanism of peroxisome proliferation and for determination of the pathological conditions under which peroxisomal function is impaired.

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A photolabile reagent, p-azidophenacyl-DL-thiocarnitine, was synthesized and tested as a photoaffinity label for carnitine acetyltransferase (EC 2.3.1.7) from pigeon breast. p-Azidophenacyl-DL-thiocarnitine is an active-site-directed reagent for this acetyltransferase, since it is a competitive inhibitor (Ki 10 microM) versus carnitine. U.v. irradiation of a mixture of p-azidophenacyl-DL-thiocarnitine and enzyme produces irreversible inhibition. Acetyl-DL-carnitine protects the enzyme from inhibition by photoactivated p-azidophenacyl-DL-thiocarnitine. In the presence of 30 mM-2-mercaptoethanol as a scavenger, the relationship between loss of activity and photoincorporation of reagent suggests that one molecule of reagent is incorporated per molecule of inhibited enzyme. However, peptide maps of enzyme labelled with p-azidophenacyl[14C]thiocarnitine indicate that several (about six) tryptic peptides (of a possible 60-65) are modified. The presence of 5 mM-acetyl-DL-carnitine significantly decreases the incorporation of reagent in each labelled tryptic peptide.

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Hemiacetylcarnitinium (2S,6R:2R,65)-6-carboxymethyl-2-hydroxy-2,4,4- trimethylmorpholinium) chloride is a relatively potent competitive inhibitor (Ki = 0.89 mM) of pigeon breast carnitine acetyltransferase (CAT) and of the crude rat liver CAT (Ki = 4.72 mM) but is neither an inhibitor nor an effective substrate for purified rat liver carnitine palmitoyltransferase (CPT). It does not inhibit state 3 oxygen consumption in isolated hepatic mitochondria using palmitoyl-CoA or palmitoylcarnitine as substrates. This compound is a reaction intermediate analogue of the proposed tetrahedral intermediate for acetyl transfer between acetylcarnitine and CoASH. Because the hemiketal carbon is chiral, a suggestion is made that one of the enantiomers has the same relative configuration as the proposed tetrahedral intermediate.

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The effect of the heavy metal toxicants HgCl2, CH3HgCl, and CdCl2 on the acetylating activity of membranous carnitine acetyltransferase (CarAc) in membrane vesicles from the maternal surface of human placental syncytiotrophoblast has been investigated. CarAc was inhibited by inorganic and organic mercury and cadmium. Carnitine acetylation was inhibited by as little as 5 microM mercury, with complete inhibition at 50 microM inorganic and organic mercury. Inhibition by cadmium was incomplete (less than 60%) at 500 microM CdCl2. Kinetic studies using Hanes plots revealed a mixed type of inhibition of CarAc by the metals. Cysteine preincubation decreased the amount of inhibition of CarAc by the metals. These results indicate that the inhibition of CarAc by heavy metals occurs by binding of the sulfhydryl on the enzyme by the metals. This interaction may be a mechanism of the heavy metal-induced fetotoxicity.

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