carnitine O-acetyltransferase (CRAT, carnitine acetylase, CAT1)

Function

• specific for short chain fatty acids
• seems to affect flux through pyruvate dehydrogenase
• may be involved in transport of acetyl-CoA into mitochondria

acetyl-CoA + carnitine <--> CoA + O-acetylcarnitine

Structure

• monomer
• belongs to the carnitine/choline acetyltransferase family

Compartment

• endoplasmic reticulum (putative)
• peroxisome (putative)
• mitochondrial inner membrane, matrix side

Alternative splicing

named isoforms=3

Expression

• expressed in skeletal muscle > heart, liver & pancreas
• barely detectable in brain, placenta, lung & kidney

More general terms

• carnitine acyltransferase
• acetyltransferase

Database

• UniProt: http://www.uniprot.org/uniprot/P43155.html
• Kegg: http://www.genome.jp/dbget-bin/www_bget?hsa:1384
• OMIM: https://mirror.omim.org/entry/600184