Phospholipid composition of highly purified mitochondrial outer membranes of rat liver and Neurospora crassa. Is cardiolipin present in the mitochondrial outer membrane?

Isolated mitochondrial outer membrane vesicles (OMV) are a suitable system for studying various functions of the mitochondrial outer membrane. For studies on mitochondrial lipid import as well as for studies on the role of lipids in processes occurring in the outer membrane, knowledge of the phospholipid composition of the outer membrane is indispensable. Recently, a mild subfractionation procedure was described for the isolation of highly purified OMV from mitochondria of Neurospora crassa (Mayer, A., Lill, R. and Neupert, W. (1993) J. Cell Biol. 121, 1233-1243). This procedure, which consists of swelling and mechanical disruption of mitochondria followed by two steps of sucrose density gradient centrifugation, was adapted for the isolation of OMV from rat liver mitochondria. Using the appropriate enzyme markers it is shown that the resulting OMV are obtained in a yield of 25%, and that their purity is superior to that of previous OMV preparations. Analysis of the phospholipid composition of the OMV showed that phosphatidylcholine, phosphatidylethanolamine and phosphatidylinositol are the major phospholipid constituents, and that cardiolipin is only present in trace amounts. The phospholipid composition is very similar to that of the highly purified OMV from mitochondria of Neurospora crassa, although the latter still contain a small amount of cardiolipin.

Aminophospholipid translocase and proteins involved in transmembrane phospholipid traffic.

The transmembrane distribution of phospholipids in the membranes of eukaryotic cells depends on specific proteins (called flippases). The aminophospholipid translocase is responsible for the sequestration of phosphatidylserine and phosphatidylethanolamine in the cytosolic leaflet of plasma membranes. Several laboratories are presently working on the identification, purification and cloning of this Mg-ATPase, first recognized in the human red cell membrane. In accordance with the 1992 hypothesis of Higgins and Gottesman, proteins of the MDR1 family appear to be able to translocate certain phospholipids from the inner to the outer monolayer of the plasma membrane. It has been reported in particular that expression of the human MDR3 and mouse mdr2 genes promote translocation of long chain phosphatidylcholine, while expression of the MDR1 gene stimulates the outward motion of phospholipids possessing at least one short chain. ATP-independent flippases activities were recognized not only in microsomes but also in Golgi membranes.

Transmembrane movement of phosphatidylcholine in mitochondrial outer membrane vesicles.

One of the steps in the import of phosphatidylcholine (PC) in mitochondria is transmembrane movement across the outer membrane. This process was investigated in vitro using isolated mitochondrial outer membrane vesicles (OMV) from rat liver. 14C-Labeled PC was introduced into the OMV from small unilamellar vesicles by a PC-specific transfer protein (PCTP). The membrane topology of the newly introduced PC was determined from its accessibility to phospholipase A2. Under conditions where the OMV stay intact, externally added phospholipase A2 is able to hydrolyze up to 50% of both the introduced [14C]PC and the endogenous PC. Pool size calculations showed that close to 100% of the PC in the OMV can be exchanged by PCTP. A back-exchange experiment revealed that the introduction of the labeled PC is reversible. The results demonstrate that newly introduced PC molecules readily equilibrate over both leaflets of the OMV membrane. The kinetics of the PCTP-mediated exchange process indicate that the t1/2 of the transmembrane movement at 30 degrees C is 2 min or less.

Preferential cyclization of 2,3(S):22(S),23-dioxidosqualene by mammalian 2,3-oxidosqualene-lanosterol cyclase.

Kinetic studies on the cyclization of 2,3(S)-oxido and 2,3(S):22(S),23-dioxido[14C]squalene catalyzed by liver oxidosqualene-lanosterol cyclase revealed a specificity (in terms of V/Km) of the enzyme for the diepoxide. The specificity ratio was dependent on the enzyme preparation, i.e. purified or microsomal, and was highest (about 5) with the microsomal enzyme in the presence of supernatant protein factors. These results explain why, in the presence of cyclase inhibitors, the squalene epoxides can be channeled into a cholesterol biosynthesis regulatory pathway via 24(S),25-epoxylanosterol and 24(S),25-epoxycholesterol.