Loss of the Mitochondrial SAM Transporter Reveals a Lipoylation-Dependent Metabolic Vulnerability in the Postnatal Heart
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ABSTRACT: SLC25A26 encodes the sole mitochondrial S-adenosylmethionine carrier (SAMC). Inside mitochondria, SAM functions as a methyl group donor for various methyltransferases and as a substrate for radical SAM enzymes. Variants in SAMC are associated with mitochondrial disease, and we previously demonstrated that the mitochondrial methylation potential links the one-carbon pool to energy metabolism, but tissue-specific responses are poorly understood. Here, we studied the physiological, molecular, and metabolic consequences of a SAMC deficiency in heart or skeletal muscle. While SAMC ablation in skeletal muscle causes a progressive decline resembling other mitochondrial myopathies, cardiac-specific deletion causes a severe and sudden cardiac phenotype driven by a rapid loss of lipoylation of 2-oxoacid dehydrogenases. This collapse coincides with the transition from milk to solid food, causing a natural reduction in medium-chain fatty acids. We demonstrate that octanoic acid becomes rate-limiting during this transition, exposing a critical requirement for lipoic acid during cardiac maturation.
INSTRUMENT(S):
ORGANISM(S): Mus Musculus (mouse)
TISSUE(S): Heart, Skeletal Muscle Fiber
SUBMITTER:
Akos Vegvari
LAB HEAD: Akos Vegvari
PROVIDER: PXD050486 | Pride | 2026-07-03
REPOSITORIES: Pride
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