Local Mitochondrial ATP Production Regulates Endothelial Fatty Acid Uptake and Transport

Most organs use fatty acids (FAs) as a key nutrient, but little is known of how blood-borne FAs traverse the endothelium to reach underlying tissues. We conducted a small-molecule screen and identified niclosamide as a suppressor of endothelial FA uptake and transport. Structure/activity relationship studies demonstrated that niclosamide acts through mitochondrial uncoupling. Inhibitors of oxidative phosphorylation and the ATP/ADP translocase also suppressed FA uptake, pointing principally to ATP production. Decreasing total cellular ATP by blocking glycolysis did not decrease uptake, indicating that specifically mitochondrial ATP is required. Endothelial FA uptake is promoted by fatty acid transport protein 4 (FATP4) via its ATP-dependent acyl-CoA synthetase activity. Confocal microscopy revealed that FATP4 resides in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER), and that endothelial ER is intimately juxtaposed with mitochondria. Together, these data indicate that mitochondrial ATP production, but not total ATP levels, drives endothelial FA uptake and transport via acyl-CoA formation in mitochondrial/ER microdomains.