Hepatic peroxisomal and mitochondrial fatty acid oxidation in the riboflavin-deficient rat.

The effects of riboflavin deficiencyon hepatic peroxisomaland mitochondrial palmitoyl-CoA oxidation were examined in weanlingWistar-strain male rats. The specific activitiesof peroxisomalcatalase and palmitoyl-CoA-dependent NAD+ reduction were not affected by up to 10 weeks of riboflavin deficiency. In contrast, the specific activityof mitochondrial carnitine-dependent palmitoyl-CoA oxidation was depressed by 75% at 10 weeks of deficiency. The amount of peroxisomal proteinper gof liver was not affected by riboflavin deficiency, whereas, expressed per liver, both riboflavin-deficient and pair-fed controls showed decreased peroxisomalprotein compared with controls fed ad libitum. Hepatic mitochondria, but not peroxisomes, were sensitive to riboflavin deficiency.