N-arachidonylglycine causes ROS production and cytochrome c release in liver mitochondria

N-arachidonylglycine (NA-Gly) is an amino acid derivative of arachidonic acid. This compound is structurally related to anandamide (arachidonylethanolamine), which is considered an endogenous ligand of the cannabinoid receptor. NA-Gly is present at relatively high levels in the spinal cord, small intestine, and kidneys and at lower, but remarkable, levels in testes, lungs, and liver. The presence of varying levels in different organs suggests multiple functions in addition to the reported anti-inflammatory and pain suppression actions. Here a study on the interaction of NA-Gly with isolated mitochondria is reported. The results show that micromolar concentrations of NA-Gly cause: (i) an increase in the resting state respiration with both glutamate plus malate and succinate as substrates and (ii) a decrease in either ADP- or uncoupler-activated respiration. Whereas the stimulated resting state respiration was substantially reduced by cyclosporin A (CsA), the NA-Gly-inhibited State 3 respiration was almost unaffected. Measurements by blot analysis showed that NA-Gly caused a CsA-sensitive cytochrome c release. Under these conditions no matrix swelling could be detected. Experiments are also presented showing that NA-Gly caused a respiration-dependent large ROS production, which seems in turn to be responsible for the inhibition of electron transport activity and cytochrome c release.