Citrate and isocitrate utilization by rat ventral prostate mitochondria.

Isolated rat ventral prostate mitochondria preparations were capable of utilizing exogenous isocitrate with some resulting production of citrate. The prostate preparation did not utilize citrate or alphaKG. Citrate utilization via isocitrate seems to be limited by a unique aconitase activity which permits isocitrate to citrate but not citrate to isocitrate conversion. In contrast, kidney cortex mitochondria (under these same conditions) were capable of utilizing citrate, isocitrate, and alphaKG, and also converting isocitrate to citrate. The results support the view that citrate oxidation by prostate may be limited at the aconitase step, and thus may be a key step in accounting for the uniquely high citrate content of prostate.