Comparison of the effects of carnitine palmitoyltransferase-1 and -2 inhibitors on rat heart hypertrophy

Rats treated orally for 21 days with aminocarnitine, an inhibitor of carnitine palmitoyltransferase-2 (CPT-2) do not show hypertrophy of the heart. This contrasts with the effects of carnitine palmitoyltransferase-1 (CPT-1) inhibitors, that, according to the literature, cause hypertrophy. As CPT-1 and CPT-2 are both required for the oxidation of long-chain fatty acids in mitochondria, it can be concluded that inhibition of fatty acid oxidation per se is not responsible for cell growth, but rather the accumulation of a metabolite, probably long-chain acylcoenzyme A. CPT-1 and CPT-2 inhibitors cause different metabolic changes in the heart. Electron microscopy of hearts fixed 1 hour after Langendorff perfusion with the two types of inhibitors reveals some of these changes. Multilamellar vesicles were observed with aminocarnitine (CPT-2 inhibitor) but not with etomoxir (CPT-1 inhibitor). When both inhibitors were present, electron-dense spots adjacent to mitochondria were observed, possibly containing long-chain acylaminocarnitine.