Effect of alloxan on the transport of dicarboxylate, tricarboxylate, pyruvate and glutamate in isolated mouse liver mitochondria

The effect of alloxan on anion transport in isolated mouse liver mitochondria was studied with the swelling technique. Mitochondria pre-incubated with alloxan exhibited partial inhibition of the transport of malate, citrate, pyruvate and glutamate. 2n-butylmalonate caused complete inhibition of malate transport, and the translocation of citrate was completely blocked by 1,2,3-benzenetricarboxylate, while N-ethylmaleimide inhibited glutamate transport partially. The observation that alloxan inhibits different mitochondrial anion transport mechanisms emphasizes that the drug profoundly affects mitochondrial function.