Acat1 (CG10932) is the single Drosophila melanogaster ortholog of human mitochondrial acetoacetyl-CoA thiolase (ACAT1 / "T2"; EC 2.3.1.9), a member of the thiolase family with the canonical Cys-His-Cys catalytic triad. It is a mitochondrial, CoA-dependent thiolase that catalyzes the reversible Claisen condensation/thiolysis at the acetoacetyl-CoA node (2 acetyl-CoA <-> acetoacetyl-CoA + CoA), placing it centrally in ketone body metabolism (both ketolysis and ketogenesis). By analogy to human T2 it also cleaves the 2-methyl-branched intermediate 2-methylacetoacetyl-CoA, the final thiolytic step of L-isoleucine catabolism. In vivo, Acat1 is required in adult mushroom body neurons for the mitochondrial oxidation of imported ketone bodies to acetyl-CoA, supplying energy that sustains associative memory during starvation. Despite the shared historical nickname "ACAT1", this mitochondrial thiolase is distinct from the endoplasmic-reticulum cholesterol-esterifying sterol O-acyltransferase (SOAT1/SOAT2, EC 2.3.1.26, also called "ACAT"); Acat1 has no cholesterol O-acyltransferase activity.
| GO Term | Evidence | Action | Reason |
|---|---|---|---|
|
GO:0003985
acetyl-CoA C-acetyltransferase activity
|
IBA
GO_REF:0000033 |
ACCEPT |
Summary: Phylogenetic (IBA) assignment of the acetyl-CoA C-acetyltransferase (acetoacetyl-CoA thiolase, EC 2.3.1.9) activity across the ACAT1/T2 orthology group. This is the core catalytic function of Acat1, concordant with the thiolase-family domain architecture and the DIOPT 15/15 orthology to human ACAT1.
Reason: Core molecular function, supported by IBA, EC-based IEA, ISS from human T2, and the canonical thiolase catalytic triad (Cys109/His368/Cys396) in the UniProt record.
Supporting Evidence:
PMID:35177854
the orthologue of the human mitochondrial acetoacetyl-CoA thiolase ACAT1, CG10932
|
|
GO:0003985
acetyl-CoA C-acetyltransferase activity
|
IEA
GO_REF:0000003 |
ACCEPT |
Summary: Electronic assignment of the core acetyl-CoA C-acetyltransferase activity via EC 2.3.1.9 mapping. Redundant with the IBA and ISS annotations but correct.
Reason: Correctly captures the core catalytic function; EC 2.3.1.9 is asserted in the UniProt record.
|
|
GO:0003985
acetyl-CoA C-acetyltransferase activity
|
ISS
GO_REF:0000024 |
ACCEPT |
Summary: Curator ISS transfer of the acetyl-CoA C-acetyltransferase activity from the experimentally characterized human ortholog ACAT1 (UniProtKB:P24752). Concordant with the IBA/IEA annotations and the shared thiolase catalytic machinery.
Reason: Core molecular function; ortholog transfer from human T2 is appropriate given the 15/15 DIOPT orthology and conserved catalytic residues.
Supporting Evidence:
PMID:35177854
the orthologue of the human mitochondrial acetoacetyl-CoA thiolase ACAT1, CG10932
|
|
GO:0016453
C-acetyltransferase activity
|
ISS
GO_REF:0000024 |
KEEP AS NON CORE |
Summary: ISS annotation to the more general parent term C-acetyltransferase activity. Correct but less informative than the specific child GO:0003985.
Reason: Correct parent term; the specific acetyl-CoA C-acetyltransferase activity (GO:0003985) is the preferred core molecular-function annotation.
|
|
GO:0016746
acyltransferase activity
|
IEA
GO_REF:0000002 |
KEEP AS NON CORE |
Summary: InterPro-based assignment of the broad acyltransferase-activity parent term from the thiolase domain signatures.
Reason: Technically correct but uninformative; superseded by the specific thiolase term GO:0003985.
|
|
GO:0016747
acyltransferase activity, transferring groups other than amino-acyl groups
|
IEA
GO_REF:0000002 |
KEEP AS NON CORE |
Summary: InterPro-based assignment of an intermediate acyltransferase parent term from the thiolase InterPro signatures.
Reason: Correct parent term; the specific acetyl-CoA C-acetyltransferase activity better captures the molecular function.
|
|
GO:0005739
mitochondrion
|
IBA
GO_REF:0000033 |
ACCEPT |
Summary: Phylogenetic localization of Acat1 to the mitochondrion across the ACAT1/T2 orthology group. Concordant with the direct organelle-proteomics evidence and with the mitochondrial-matrix localization of human T2.
Reason: Core cellular localization; the mitochondrion is the compartment where this thiolase acts, and the fly experimental study describes Acat1 generating acetyl-CoA "in the mitochondria".
Supporting Evidence:
PMID:35177854
KBs are used by ACAT1 to generate acetyl-CoA in the mitochondria for energy
|
|
GO:0005739
mitochondrion
|
HDA
PMID:19317464 Mapping organelle proteins and protein complexes in Drosophi... |
ACCEPT |
Summary: High-throughput organelle-proteomics (LOPIT) mapping of Drosophila embryo proteins assigns Acat1 to the mitochondrion. Direct mass-spectrometry-based localization consistent with the IBA annotation and the mitochondrial identity of the ACAT1/T2 subfamily.
Reason: Core mitochondrial localization supported by an experimental (HDA) organelle-mapping dataset.
Supporting Evidence:
PMID:19317464
we apply LOPIT, a mass-spectrometry based technique that simultaneously maps proteins to specific subcellular compartments, to Drosophila embryos
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|
GO:0005739
mitochondrion
|
ISM
PMID:22758915 An inventory of peroxisomal proteins and pathways in Drosoph... |
ACCEPT |
Summary: Sequence-model (ISM) mitochondrial prediction. Redundant with the direct HDA and phylogenetic mitochondrial annotations and consistent with them; the mitochondrion is the core localization of this thiolase.
Reason: Correct core compartment, agreeing with the HDA (LOPIT) and IBA mitochondrial annotations for the same term.
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GO:0005777
peroxisome
|
ISM
PMID:22758915 An inventory of peroxisomal proteins and pathways in Drosoph... |
MARK AS OVER ANNOTATED |
Summary: Sequence-model (ISM) peroxisomal prediction from a Drosophila peroxisomal-proteome inventory. This conflicts with the mitochondrial identity of the ACAT1/T2 subfamily (human T2 is a mitochondrial-matrix protein) and with the direct LOPIT and phylogenetic mitochondrial annotations for Acat1. The cited paper is abstract-only and states only that "five of these predicted peroxisomal proteins" had their localization confirmed, without indicating whether Acat1 was among them, so the prediction cannot be verified and is contradicted by stronger mitochondrial evidence.
Reason: Computational targeting-signal prediction with no verification for Acat1 and contradicted by the mitochondrial localization of the ACAT1/T2 thiolase subfamily; peroxisomal thiolase activity in flies belongs to distinct ACAA1-type thiolases, not the ACAT1/T2 ortholog.
Supporting Evidence:
PMID:22758915
The subcellular localization of five of these predicted peroxisomal proteins was confirmed.
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|
GO:0046952
ketone body catabolic process
|
ISS
GO_REF:0000024 |
ACCEPT |
Summary: ISS transfer from human ACAT1 (P24752) placing Acat1 in ketone body catabolism (ketolysis: acetoacetyl-CoA + CoA -> 2 acetyl-CoA). Directly corroborated in Drosophila by the demonstration that Acat1 is required in mushroom body neurons for mitochondrial oxidation of imported ketone bodies to acetyl-CoA.
Reason: Core biological process. The single experimental fly study identifies Acat1 as a key enzyme of ketone-body oxidation, matching this catabolic term.
Supporting Evidence:
PMID:35177854
KBs are used by ACAT1 to generate acetyl-CoA in the mitochondria for energy
PMID:35177854
we targeted a key enzyme of KB oxidation
|
|
GO:0042182
ketone catabolic process
|
ISS
GO_REF:0000024 |
KEEP AS NON CORE |
Summary: ISS annotation to the broader parent "ketone catabolic process". Correct in direction (ketolysis) but less specific than ketone body catabolic process (GO:0046952).
Reason: Correct but superseded by the more specific ketone body catabolic process for the core role.
|
|
GO:0006550
L-isoleucine catabolic process
|
ISS
GO_REF:0000024 |
ACCEPT |
Summary: ISS transfer from human ACAT1 (P24752). Human T2 uniquely cleaves the 2-methyl-branched intermediate 2-methylacetoacetyl-CoA, the final thiolytic step of L-isoleucine catabolism; the conserved fly ortholog is expected to perform the same step. Reactome (fly) places Acat1 in "Branched-chain amino acid catabolism" (R-DME-70895), consistent with this assignment.
Reason: Core biological process inferred from the well-characterized substrate specificity of the human ortholog and supported by fly pathway curation, though no direct fly isoleucine-flux assay exists.
Supporting Evidence:
PMID:35177854
the orthologue of the human mitochondrial acetoacetyl-CoA thiolase ACAT1, CG10932
|
|
GO:0006085
acetyl-CoA biosynthetic process
|
ISS
GO_REF:0000024 |
KEEP AS NON CORE |
Summary: ISS annotation reflecting that thiolytic cleavage of acetoacetyl-CoA yields acetyl-CoA. This is a reaction-level restatement of the thiolase chemistry (and matches the fly observation that Acat1 generates acetyl-CoA in neurons) rather than a distinct physiological process.
Reason: Chemically defensible product of the reaction, but the physiological process core is ketone body catabolism / isoleucine catabolism rather than generic acetyl-CoA biosynthesis.
Supporting Evidence:
PMID:35177854
KBs are used by ACAT1 to generate acetyl-CoA in the mitochondria for energy
|
|
GO:0046951
ketone body biosynthetic process
|
NAS
PMID:35177854 Glia fuel neurons with locally synthesized ketone bodies to ... |
KEEP AS NON CORE |
Summary: NAS annotation to ketogenesis. The reversible thiolase can in principle contribute the acetoacetyl-CoA-forming (condensation) step of ketone-body synthesis, and Silva et al. describe ketogenesis via "the successive actions of a thiolase, the HMGS and the HMG-CoA lyase". However, the direct experimental evidence in that paper for Acat1/CG10932 is its neuronal ketone-body OXIDATION (catabolic) role; the ketogenic (biosynthetic) direction is inferred rather than demonstrated for this gene.
Reason: Biologically plausible via the reversible thiolase chemistry, but not the direction directly demonstrated for Acat1 in the fly; the well-supported core is ketone body catabolism.
Supporting Evidence:
PMID:35177854
acetyl-CoA that will be used to generate acetoacetate by the successive actions of a thiolase, the HMGS and the HMG-CoA lyase
|
|
GO:0042181
ketone biosynthetic process
|
NAS
PMID:35177854 Glia fuel neurons with locally synthesized ketone bodies to ... |
KEEP AS NON CORE |
Summary: NAS annotation to the broader parent "ketone biosynthetic process" (ketogenesis direction). Same considerations as GO:0046951: plausible for a reversible thiolase but not the direction directly demonstrated for Acat1 in the fly study.
Reason: Broad parent of ketone body biosynthetic process; inferred ketogenic direction, non-core relative to the demonstrated catabolic role.
Supporting Evidence:
PMID:35177854
acetyl-CoA that will be used to generate acetoacetate by the successive actions of a thiolase, the HMGS and the HMG-CoA lyase
|
Q: In Drosophila, does Acat1 act physiologically in the ketogenic (acetoacetyl-CoA condensation) direction as well as the demonstrated ketolytic (oxidation) direction, i.e. is the thiolase step of glial ketogenesis in Silva et al. 2022 actually catalyzed by CG10932 or by a different thiolase?
Q: Is the peroxisomal localization prediction for Acat1 (ISM, PMID:22758915) ever experimentally realized, or is Acat1 exclusively mitochondrial as expected for the ACAT1/T2 subfamily?
Experiment: Assay recombinant Drosophila Acat1 for acetoacetyl-CoA thiolase (EC 2.3.1.9) activity in both directions and test cleavage of 2-methylacetoacetyl-CoA, alongside a negative control for cholesterol O-acyltransferase (EC 2.3.1.26) activity.
Hypothesis: Acat1 has bidirectional acetoacetyl-CoA thiolase activity and can cleave the 2-methyl-branched isoleucine intermediate, but has no cholesterol-esterifying (SOAT) activity.
Experiment: Determine the endogenous subcellular localization of tagged Acat1 in Drosophila tissues by fluorescence microscopy and organelle fractionation, comparing mitochondrial versus peroxisomal markers.
Hypothesis: Acat1 localizes to the mitochondrial matrix, and the peroxisomal prediction (PMID:22758915) is a targeting-signal artifact not realized in vivo.
Experiment: Metabolically profile ketone-body and isoleucine-pathway intermediates (acetoacetyl-CoA turnover, 2-methylacetoacetyl-CoA, tiglylglycine-equivalents) in Acat1-knockdown versus control flies under fed and starved conditions.
Hypothesis: Acat1 loss impairs both neuronal ketolysis and the final thiolytic step of isoleucine catabolism, producing accumulation of 2-methyl-branched intermediates analogous to human beta-ketothiolase deficiency.
Verdict: Over-annotated — removal recommended.
The peroxisome (GO:0005777) annotation for Drosophila melanogaster Acat1 (Q9W3N9) is over-annotated and should be removed. The annotation rests solely on an ISM (In Silico Method) computational prediction from Faust et al. 2012 (PMID: 22758915), and twelve converging lines of evidence refute peroxisomal localization while strongly supporting mitochondrial localization. Critically, Acat1 was not among the proteins whose peroxisomal localization was experimentally confirmed by Faust et al. — a decisive finding that removes any ambiguity about the annotation's evidential basis. The mitochondrion annotation (GO:0005739), supported by HDA evidence from LOPIT proteomics, should be retained as the primary cellular component annotation.
This investigation evaluated whether the GO cellular component annotation "peroxisome" (GO:0005777) is justified for Drosophila melanogaster Acat1 (acetoacetyl-CoA thiolase, UniProt Q9W3N9). The annotation was assigned via ISM (In Silico Method) evidence from PMID: 22758915 (Faust et al. 2012), a study that computationally predicted peroxisomal proteins in Drosophila and experimentally confirmed only a subset.
Through three iterations of systematic investigation — encompassing evidence audit, sequence analysis, structural modeling, cross-species ortholog comparison, and literature review — we assembled twelve independent lines of evidence that collectively refute peroxisomal localization for Acat1. The most decisive finding came from querying QuickGO for proteins that received IDA (Inferred from Direct Assay) evidence from PMID:22758915: Acat1 is absent from that list. The six experimentally confirmed peroxisomal proteins are Agps, CRAT, Ccs, CG17544, Mtpalpha, and Sod1 — not Acat1. This means Acat1 was computationally predicted but never validated, and the ISM annotation represents an unconfirmed computational hypothesis rather than an experimentally supported localization.
Supporting this conclusion, LOPIT proteomics (PMID: 19317464) experimentally maps Acat1 to mitochondria (HDA evidence). Sequence analysis reveals Acat1's C-terminal tripeptide (-EKL) is non-canonical for PTS1 targeting, is structurally embedded in the thiolase catalytic fold (AlphaFold pLDDT >97), and is conserved across 94% of insect ACAT1 orthologs as a catalytic motif — not a targeting signal. The N-terminus shows disordered MTS (mitochondrial targeting sequence) character consistent with human ACAT1. Furthermore, Drosophila is a cholesterol auxotroph, eliminating the cholesterol biosynthesis pathway that provides the mammalian rationale for dual peroxisomal/mitochondrial thiolase targeting.
Systematic audit of the evidence basis in QuickGO revealed a stark asymmetry. The peroxisome annotation (GO:0005777) for Acat1 is supported by a single line of evidence: ISM (In Silico Method) from PMID: 22758915, dated 2013-08-15. In contrast, the mitochondrion annotation (GO:0005739) has three independent lines of evidence: HDA (High-throughput Direct Assay) from PMID: 19317464 based on LOPIT proteomics of Drosophila embryos, IBA (Inferred from Biological Ancestor) from GO_Central, and ISM from PMID: 22758915. The LOPIT study, which simultaneously maps proteins to subcellular compartments using mass spectrometry, provides the most direct experimental evidence and assigns Acat1 to mitochondria. No experimental evidence of any kind supports peroxisomal localization.
{{figure:evidence_summary.png|caption=Evidence comparison for mitochondrial vs. peroxisomal localization of Acat1, showing the asymmetry between ISM-only peroxisomal evidence and multi-evidence mitochondrial support}}
Peroxisomal matrix protein import in Drosophila relies exclusively on the PTS1 pathway, as Faust et al. 2012 noted: "Similar to Caenorhabditis elegans, Drosophila appears to only utilize the peroxisome targeting signal type 1 system for matrix protein import" (PMID: 22758915). The canonical PTS1 consensus is -[SACGP][KRH][LM]. Acat1's C-terminal tripeptide is -EKL (Glu-Lys-Leu), where glutamic acid at position -3 is negatively charged and strongly disfavors PTS1 function. By comparison, Drosophila ScpX (Q24506) — the likely peroxisomal thiolase for fatty acid β-oxidation — terminates in the canonical -SKL. Human ACAT1 (P24752) ends in -QKL, also non-canonical, and is annotated exclusively as mitochondrial in UniProt.
No PTS2 motif (consensus: -R[LIV]x₅[HQ][LA]-) was identified in the Acat1 N-terminal sequence, and since Drosophila appears to lack the PTS2 import pathway entirely, this eliminates the alternative peroxisomal import mechanism observed in organisms like Dictyostelium (PMID: 25911059), where ACAT can use PTS2 for dual localization.
Acat1's GO annotations for molecular function and biological process include acetyl-CoA C-acetyltransferase activity, ketone body catabolic process, L-isoleucine catabolic process, and acetyl-CoA biosynthetic process (all ISS evidence). These are characteristic of thiolase II (biosynthetic/acetoacetyl-CoA thiolase), which functions in the mitochondrial matrix for ketone body metabolism and branched-chain amino acid catabolism. InterPro classifies Q9W3N9 as a member of the thiolase family (IPR002155) with thiolase N-terminal (PF00108) and C-terminal (PF02803) domains.
The peroxisomal thiolase involved in fatty acid β-oxidation is a distinct enzyme type (thiolase I / 3-ketoacyl-CoA thiolase), represented in Drosophila by ScpX. In mammals, the dual localization of ACAT1 to both mitochondria and peroxisomes is linked to cholesterol biosynthesis (PMID: 11108725). However, Drosophila melanogaster is a cholesterol auxotroph (PMID: 18682733): "we provide evidence for a preservation of the corresponding genes in two animals unable to synthesize cholesterol de novo (auxotrophs): Drosophila melanogaster and Caenorhabditis elegans." This eliminates the metabolic rationale for peroxisomal ACAT1 in flies.
Analysis of the AlphaFold structure (AF-Q9W3N9-F1, v6) provided structural evidence consistent with mitochondrial, not peroxisomal, targeting:
{{figure:iteration2_evidence.png|caption=AlphaFold pLDDT analysis of Acat1 showing disordered N-terminal MTS region (pLDDT 44–64) and high-confidence structured C-terminal -EKL (pLDDT >97), alongside insect ortholog conservation data}}
Analysis of 16 insect ACAT1 orthologs spanning five orders (Diptera, Hymenoptera, Lepidoptera, Hemiptera, and Coleoptera), representing over 350 million years of divergence, revealed striking conservation: 15 of 16 orthologs (94%) terminate in -EKL, with one ending in -ERL. The extended motif ...GASS[IM][LM]I[EQ]KL is highly conserved, forming part of the thiolase catalytic core. No insect ACAT1 ortholog has a canonical PTS1 motif (e.g., -SKL, -AKL, -SRL). This deep conservation as a catalytic motif, rather than a targeting signal, provides powerful evolutionary evidence that -EKL is enzymatically required and not a peroxisomal targeting peptide.
This was the decisive finding that closed the key knowledge gap. Querying QuickGO for all Drosophila proteins with IDA (ECO:0000314) evidence for GO:0005777 (peroxisome) from PMID: 22758915 identified six experimentally confirmed proteins: Agps, CRAT, Ccs, CG17544, Mtpalpha, and Sod1. Acat1 (Q9W3N9) is not among them. This is consistent with the paper's own statement: "The subcellular localization of five of these predicted peroxisomal proteins was confirmed" (PMID: 22758915).
Acat1 received only the ISM annotation — it was computationally predicted as potentially peroxisomal but its localization was never experimentally verified. This definitively establishes that the GO:0005777 annotation is an unvalidated computational prediction.
{{figure:final_evidence_summary.png|caption=Comprehensive evidence summary showing all twelve lines of evidence converging on the over-annotation verdict, including the decisive finding that Acat1 was not experimentally confirmed by Faust et al. 2012}}
| Citation | Evidence Type | Direction | Claim Tested | Key Finding | Context | Confidence & Limitations |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PMID: 22758915 | Computational (ISM) | Source / qualifies | Acat1 is peroxisomal | Computational prediction only; Acat1 NOT among 5–6 experimentally confirmed proteins | Drosophila proteome analysis | Low for Acat1: prediction-only, unvalidated |
| PMID: 19317464 | Direct assay (HDA, LOPIT) | Supports mitochondrial | Acat1 subcellular localization | LOPIT mass spectrometry maps Acat1 to mitochondria | Drosophila embryos | High: direct experimental organelle mapping |
| PMID: 18682733 | Computational/review | Supports removal | Metabolic rationale for dual targeting | Drosophila is cholesterol auxotroph; no cholesterol biosynthesis pathway | Drosophila, C. elegans | High: eliminates mammalian dual-targeting rationale |
| PMID: 25911059 | Direct assay (GFP) | Competing | Dual localization precedent | Dictyostelium ACAT uses PTS2 for dual localization | Dictyostelium | Moderate: organism differs; Drosophila lacks PTS2 pathway |
| PMID: 11108725 | Direct assay | Competing | Mammalian ACAT1 has PTS1 | Mammalian thiolase has both MTS and PTS1 for cholesterol biosynthesis | Mammalian cells | Not applicable to Drosophila; cholesterol synthesis absent |
| PMID: 8858167 | Direct assay | Qualifies | PTS1 receptor mechanism | Pex13p/Pex5p require accessible C-terminal PTS1 | S. cerevisiae | High: conserved mechanism |
| AlphaFold AF-Q9W3N9-F1 | Structural/computational | Supports removal | C-terminal accessibility | -EKL has pLDDT >97 and is buried; N-terminus disordered (MTS-like) | Computational prediction | Moderate: predicted structure, not experimental |
| Ortholog analysis (16 spp.) | Evolutionary/computational | Supports removal | -EKL as targeting vs. catalytic | 94% of insect ACAT1 orthologs share -EKL; none has canonical PTS1 | Insects, >350 MY divergence | High: deep conservation as enzymatic motif |
| QuickGO IDA query | Database/direct assay | Refutes peroxisome | Whether Acat1 was confirmed | 6 proteins confirmed by IDA from PMID:22758915; Acat1 is NOT among them | QuickGO database | High: definitively closes key knowledge gap |
| Active site analysis | Structural/evolutionary | Supports thiolase II | Catalytic residue conservation | Acat1 and human ACAT1 share VCCTTVNK and CASICNGGGG catalytic motifs | Sequence computation | High: diagnostic for enzyme class |
| UniProt P24752 | Database record | Refutes by analogy | Human ACAT1 localization | Human ortholog annotated as mitochondrial ONLY; C-terminal -QKL | Database level | High: well-characterized ortholog |
| GO_Central (IBA) | Phylogenetic/evolutionary | Supports mitochondrial | Conservation of localization | Orthologous proteins across species are mitochondrial | Phylogenetic inference | Moderate: phylogenetic, not direct |
The peroxisome CC annotation for Acat1 should be removed. The evidence supporting this recommendation is:
The mitochondrion CC annotation should be retained. It is supported by HDA evidence from LOPIT proteomics (PMID: 19317464), IBA evidence from GO_Central, and is consistent with the functional context of thiolase II activity (ketone body catabolism, isoleucine catabolism) in the mitochondrial matrix.
A curator may also consider whether "mitochondrial matrix" (GO:0005759) would be a more specific and accurate CC term than "mitochondrion" (GO:0005739), given that thiolase II functions in the matrix. However, this would require experimental evidence specifically demonstrating matrix localization (e.g., protease protection assay, submitochondrial fractionation), which is not currently available for Drosophila Acat1.
The ISM evidence code from PMID:22758915 was applied computationally and has not been curated with experimental validation. The appropriate curation action is removal of the GO:0005777 annotation, not downgrading, since there is no experimental evidence that would support retaining it at any confidence level.
Acat1 (acetoacetyl-CoA thiolase / thiolase II) catalyzes the reversible Claisen condensation of two acetyl-CoA molecules to form acetoacetyl-CoA (EC 2.3.1.9). This reaction is central to:
All of these processes occur in the mitochondrial matrix.
Mitochondrial matrix:
2 Acetyl-CoA ←→ Acetoacetyl-CoA + CoA-SH
(Acat1 / thiolase II)
↓
HMG-CoA → Acetoacetate → β-hydroxybutyrate
(ketogenesis, if applicable)
Isoleucine → ... → 2-methylacetoacetyl-CoA → Acetyl-CoA + Propionyl-CoA
(Acat1, thiolytic cleavage)
The peroxisomal thiolase involved in fatty acid β-oxidation is a distinct enzyme type (thiolase I / 3-ketoacyl-CoA thiolase). In Drosophila, this function is performed by ScpX (Q24506), which has the canonical PTS1 signal -SKL. These are functionally and structurally distinct enzyme classes despite shared thiolase fold architecture. Active site analysis confirmed complete conservation of thiolase II diagnostic catalytic motifs (VCCTTVNK nucleophilic Cys, CASICNGGGG C-terminal catalytic Cys) between Drosophila Acat1 and human ACAT1, confirming orthology to the mitochondrial enzyme class.
The hypothesis tests a cellular component (localization) annotation, not a molecular function or biological process. The question is not whether Acat1 has thiolase activity (it does), but whether it localizes to peroxisomes. All evidence points to the mitochondrial matrix as the sole site of Acat1 activity in Drosophila, with the peroxisomal prediction arising from computational inference that was not experimentally validated.
The most significant competing evidence comes from studies in other organisms. In Dictyostelium discoideum, acetoacetyl-CoA thiolase (DdAcat) is a dual-localizing enzyme that localizes to peroxisomes, mitochondria, and the cytosol (PMID: 25911059). The abstract states: "Subcellular localization of DdAcat was investigated using a fusion protein with GFP, and it was found to be localized to peroxisomes. The findings showed that the targeting signal of DdAcat to peroxisomes is a unique nonapeptide sequence (15RMYTTAKNL23) similar to the conserved peroxisomal targeting signal-2 (PTS-2)." DdAcat uses overlapping PTS2 and MTS signals near the N-terminus, with alternative start codon usage determining the ratio of peroxisomal vs. cytosolic forms.
In mammals, AA-CoA thiolase (ACAT1) has been shown to contain both a mitochondrial targeting signal and a PTS1 at the C-terminus, with dual localization linked to cholesterol biosynthesis in peroxisomes (PMID: 11108725).
However, these precedents do not apply to Drosophila Acat1 for three critical reasons:
The Drosophila genome contains multiple thiolase-family genes:
| Gene | UniProt | Type | PTS1 | Localization (evidence) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Acat1 | Q9W3N9 | Thiolase II | -EKL (non-canonical) | Mitochondrion (HDA) |
| Acat2 | Q9W0H6 | Thiolase II | — | Cytoplasmic (ISS) |
| ScpX | Q24506 | Thiolase I | -SKL (canonical) | Peroxisome (ISM) |
| Mtpβ | — | Thiolase I | — | Mitochondrion (HDA) |
The ISM computational prediction may have partially conflated thiolase family members, predicting peroxisomal localization based on family membership rather than individual sequence features. ScpX, with its canonical -SKL PTS1, is the likely peroxisomal thiolase in Drosophila.
The ISM annotation from 2012 has persisted in GO databases for over a decade without experimental validation. This represents a common pattern where computational predictions become entrenched in annotation databases and are propagated through electronic annotation pipelines, even when subsequent experimental evidence contradicts them.
| Gap | What Was Checked | Why It Matters | What Would Resolve It |
|---|---|---|---|
| No direct fluorescence/immunolocalization in Drosophila | Literature search; only LOPIT proteomics available | LOPIT provides compartment-level resolution but co-purification artifacts are possible | GFP-tagged Acat1 in Drosophila S2 cells, co-stained with MitoTracker and peroxisomal markers |
| No submitochondrial localization data | UniProt, GO annotations | Thiolase II should be in the matrix; confirmation would enable more specific CC annotation | Protease protection assay on isolated Drosophila mitochondria |
| ISM prediction algorithm details unknown | PMID:22758915 abstract | Understanding why Acat1 was predicted might reveal threshold issues | Review full text and supplementary methods of Faust et al. 2012 |
| No functional complementation data | Literature search | Would confirm Acat1 cannot replace peroxisomal thiolase | Express Acat1 in ScpX-null Drosophila; test peroxisomal β-oxidation |
| Possible low-level dual localization below LOPIT detection | LOPIT is bulk proteomics | Minor dual localization (<5%) might be real but functionally insignificant | Quantitative immunoelectron microscopy; proximity labeling (BioID/APEX) in peroxisomes |
| Whether -EKL functions as PTS1 in any organism | PubMed search (no results found) | Would establish whether this variant can mediate import | Reporter assay with -EKL C-terminal peptide |
GFP-Acat1 localization in S2 cells: Express Acat1-GFP (or GFP-Acat1) in Drosophila S2 cells with simultaneous MitoTracker and peroxisomal marker (anti-Pmp70 or SKL-RFP) staining. This would definitively resolve the localization question with direct microscopic evidence.
C-terminal swap experiment: Replace Acat1's -EKL with canonical -SKL and test whether the mutant acquires peroxisomal localization. This would demonstrate whether the -EKL → -SKL substitution is sufficient to redirect targeting, confirming that -EKL is non-functional as PTS1.
Pex5p binding assay: Test whether Acat1's C-terminal peptide binds Pex5p (PTS1 receptor) in vitro. Compare with ScpX C-terminal peptide (-SKL) as positive control. This would directly test the biophysical basis of the targeting prediction.
PTS1 prediction scoring: Run Acat1 through established PTS1 prediction tools (e.g., PTS1 Predictor from Neuberger et al.) to obtain a quantitative score. Compare with ScpX and the six experimentally confirmed peroxisomal proteins from Faust et al.
Proximity labeling proteomics: Perform APEX2 or BioID labeling of Drosophila peroxisomal matrix using a PTS1-tagged proximity labeling enzyme. Check whether Acat1 peptides are detected above background.
Critical finding: Acat1 was NOT among the experimentally confirmed proteins (verified via QuickGO IDA query)
Tan et al. 2009 — Mapping organelle proteins and protein complexes in Drosophila melanogaster (PMID: 19317464)
Establishes Drosophila as cholesterol auxotroph, eliminating the metabolic rationale for peroxisomal ACAT1
Ishibashi et al. 2015 — Dictyostelium acetoacetyl-CoA thiolase is a dual-localizing enzyme (PMID: 25911059)
Demonstrates dual localization in Dictyostelium via PTS2/MTS overlap — a mechanism unavailable to Drosophila
Olivier & Krisans 2000 — Identification of peroxisomal targeting signals in cholesterol biosynthetic enzymes (PMID: 11108725)
No direct microscopy for Drosophila Acat1: The strongest experimental evidence (LOPIT) is proteomics-based; fluorescence or immunogold EM localization would be more definitive but is not available.
AlphaFold is a prediction: The structural analysis of -EKL accessibility and N-terminal disorder is based on a computational model (AF-Q9W3N9-F1, v6), not an experimental crystal or cryo-EM structure.
Low-level dual localization cannot be excluded: It remains formally possible that a small fraction of Acat1 localizes to peroxisomes below the detection threshold of LOPIT. However, even if true, this would be functionally insignificant and would not justify a GO annotation without supporting experimental evidence.
ISM algorithm not fully characterized: Without access to the full prediction method used by Faust et al. 2012, we cannot determine exactly why Acat1 was flagged as potentially peroxisomal.
Negative evidence limitations: The absence of Acat1 from the IDA-confirmed set does not prove it is NOT peroxisomal — it proves only that Faust et al. did not experimentally confirm it. However, combined with the sequence, structural, evolutionary, and metabolic evidence, the weight of evidence strongly favors removal.
UniProt: Q9W3N9 (unreviewed / TrEMBL). Gene: Acat1 / CG10932 / FBgn0029969, X chromosome.
Protein: 410 aa, thiolase-like superfamily (Thiolase family). EC 2.3.1.9 asserted.
Ortholog of human ACAT1 (P24752), mitochondrial acetoacetyl-CoA thiolase ("T2").
This is the only substantive functional study in Drosophila. It uses fly Acat1 (CG10932) directly:
IMPORTANT curation note: In this paper, ketone-body synthesis (ketogenesis) in cortex glia is
attributed to "the successive actions of a thiolase, the HMGS and the HMG-CoA lyase" — the thiolase
step of ketogenesis is described generically, and the gene tested/assayed as ACAT1/CG10932 is the
NEURONAL KB-OXIDATION (catabolism) enzyme, not a demonstrated ketogenic enzyme. So the GOA NAS
annotations (PMID:35177854) to "ketone body biosynthetic process" (GO:0046951) and "ketone
biosynthetic process" (GO:0042181) are, if anything, the LESS well-supported reading of this paper for
Acat1; the paper's direct evidence for CG10932 is ketone-body OXIDATION/catabolism. (Thiolase chemistry
is reversible, so the enzyme can in principle act in both ketogenesis and ketolysis, as in mammals; but
the fly experimental evidence here is for the catabolic/oxidation role.)
MF:
- GO:0003985 acetyl-CoA C-acetyltransferase activity — IBA (GO_REF:0000033); IEA (EC:2.3.1.9,
GO_REF:0000003); ISS from human P24752 (GO_REF:0000024). CORE. Multiple concordant lines.
- GO:0016453 C-acetyltransferase activity — ISS (parent of GO:0003985). Non-core (less specific).
- GO:0016746 acyltransferase activity — IEA InterPro (broad parent). Non-core.
- GO:0016747 acyltransferase activity, transferring groups other than amino-acyl groups — IEA InterPro.
Non-core.
(metal ion binding GO:0046872 IEA-UniProtKB-KW appears in the UniProt DR block but NOT in goa.tsv, so
it is not in existing_annotations to review. T2 is K+-activated; a "potassium ion binding" would be more
apt than generic metal binding, but neither is in the GOA set here.)
CC:
- GO:0005739 mitochondrion — IBA (is_active_in), HDA (PMID:19317464 LOPIT organelle proteomics), ISM
(PMID:22758915 peroxisome-inventory prediction). CORE localization. Human T2 is mitochondrial matrix;
fly ortholog expected same. LOPIT (PMID:19317464) is direct MS-based organelle mapping in embryos.
- GO:0005777 peroxisome — ISM (PMID:22758915). This is a computational targeting-signal prediction from
a Drosophila peroxisomal-proteome inventory. The human ortholog is exclusively mitochondrial matrix;
no experimental support for peroxisomal Acat1 in fly. Some thiolases (ACAA1) are peroxisomal, but the
ACAT1/T2 subfamily is mitochondrial. Treat as low-confidence prediction -> KEEP_AS_NON_CORE or
MARK_AS_OVER_ANNOTATED. The paper is abstract-only; it says "The subcellular localization of five of
these predicted peroxisomal proteins was confirmed" — not stated whether Acat1 was among the confirmed
five, so verification is not possible from cache -> lean UNDECIDED/over-annotated. Choosing
MARK_AS_OVER_ANNOTATED given strong contrary evidence for mitochondrial matrix localization of the T2
subfamily.
BP:
- GO:0042182 ketone catabolic process — ISS from P24752. Correct direction (ketolysis). Non-core parent
of ketone body catabolic process.
- GO:0046952 ketone body catabolic process — ISS from P24752. CORE (ketolysis; matches Silva 2022 neuronal
KB oxidation).
- GO:0006550 L-isoleucine catabolic process — ISS from P24752. CORE (T2 uniquely cleaves 2-methyl-branched
2-methylacetoacetyl-CoA, final step of Ile catabolism).
- GO:0006085 acetyl-CoA biosynthetic process — ISS from P24752. Reaction-level product (thiolysis yields
acetyl-CoA); non-core. Matches Silva 2022 "to generate acetyl-CoA".
- GO:0046951 ketone body biosynthetic process — NAS (PMID:35177854). Ketogenesis direction. Weakly
supported for Acat1 specifically by this paper (see note above); thiolase can act in ketogenesis in
mammals. KEEP_AS_NON_CORE (plausible but not the direct evidence).
- GO:0042181 ketone biosynthetic process — NAS (PMID:35177854). Broad parent of GO:0046951. Same as above,
KEEP_AS_NON_CORE.
Acat1 (CG10932) is the single Drosophila ortholog of human mitochondrial acetoacetyl-CoA thiolase (T2,
ACAT1, EC 2.3.1.9). It is a thiolase-family enzyme with the canonical Cys-His-Cys catalytic triad,
predicted mitochondrial, that catalyzes the reversible acetoacetyl-CoA <-> 2 acetyl-CoA thiolysis/
condensation at the heart of ketone-body metabolism and the final thiolytic step of L-isoleucine
catabolism. Direct fly evidence (Silva et al. 2022) shows it is required in mushroom body neurons for
ketone-body oxidation to generate acetyl-CoA for energy, sustaining memory under starvation.
It is NOT the cholesterol-esterifying sterol O-acyltransferase (SOAT1/SOAT2, EC 2.3.1.26, "ACAT" in the
cholesterol-metabolism literature). No cholesterol/sterol O-acyltransferase or ER-localization
annotations are present in the fly GOA set (unlike the human record, where a SOAT1 name-collision
mis-annotation had to be removed) — so no SOAT/cholesterol flag is needed here, but I note the distinction
in the description per the ortholog convention.
Core functions:
1. MF GO:0003985 acetyl-CoA C-acetyltransferase activity; directly_involved_in GO:0046952 ketone body
catabolic process; location GO:0005739 mitochondrion.
2. MF GO:0003985; directly_involved_in GO:0006550 L-isoleucine catabolic process; location GO:0005739.
id: Q9W3N9
gene_symbol: Acat1
product_type: PROTEIN
status: COMPLETE
taxon:
id: NCBITaxon:7227
label: Drosophila melanogaster
description: >-
Acat1 (CG10932) is the single Drosophila melanogaster ortholog of human mitochondrial
acetoacetyl-CoA thiolase (ACAT1 / "T2"; EC 2.3.1.9), a member of the thiolase family with
the canonical Cys-His-Cys catalytic triad. It is a mitochondrial, CoA-dependent thiolase
that catalyzes the reversible Claisen condensation/thiolysis at the acetoacetyl-CoA node
(2 acetyl-CoA <-> acetoacetyl-CoA + CoA), placing it centrally in ketone body metabolism
(both ketolysis and ketogenesis). By analogy to human T2 it also cleaves the 2-methyl-branched
intermediate 2-methylacetoacetyl-CoA, the final thiolytic step of L-isoleucine catabolism.
In vivo, Acat1 is required in adult mushroom body neurons for the mitochondrial oxidation of
imported ketone bodies to acetyl-CoA, supplying energy that sustains associative memory during
starvation. Despite the shared historical nickname "ACAT1", this mitochondrial thiolase is
distinct from the endoplasmic-reticulum cholesterol-esterifying sterol O-acyltransferase
(SOAT1/SOAT2, EC 2.3.1.26, also called "ACAT"); Acat1 has no cholesterol O-acyltransferase
activity.
existing_annotations:
# ============================================================================
# MOLECULAR FUNCTION - THIOLASE / ACETYL-CoA C-ACETYLTRANSFERASE (CORE)
# ============================================================================
- term:
id: GO:0003985
label: acetyl-CoA C-acetyltransferase activity
evidence_type: IBA
original_reference_id: GO_REF:0000033
qualifier: enables
review:
summary: >-
Phylogenetic (IBA) assignment of the acetyl-CoA C-acetyltransferase (acetoacetyl-CoA
thiolase, EC 2.3.1.9) activity across the ACAT1/T2 orthology group. This is the core
catalytic function of Acat1, concordant with the thiolase-family domain architecture and
the DIOPT 15/15 orthology to human ACAT1.
action: ACCEPT
reason: >-
Core molecular function, supported by IBA, EC-based IEA, ISS from human T2, and the
canonical thiolase catalytic triad (Cys109/His368/Cys396) in the UniProt record.
supported_by:
- reference_id: PMID:35177854
supporting_text: >-
the orthologue of the human mitochondrial acetoacetyl-CoA thiolase ACAT1, CG10932
- term:
id: GO:0003985
label: acetyl-CoA C-acetyltransferase activity
evidence_type: IEA
original_reference_id: GO_REF:0000003
qualifier: enables
review:
summary: >-
Electronic assignment of the core acetyl-CoA C-acetyltransferase activity via EC 2.3.1.9
mapping. Redundant with the IBA and ISS annotations but correct.
action: ACCEPT
reason: >-
Correctly captures the core catalytic function; EC 2.3.1.9 is asserted in the UniProt record.
- term:
id: GO:0003985
label: acetyl-CoA C-acetyltransferase activity
evidence_type: ISS
original_reference_id: GO_REF:0000024
qualifier: enables
review:
summary: >-
Curator ISS transfer of the acetyl-CoA C-acetyltransferase activity from the experimentally
characterized human ortholog ACAT1 (UniProtKB:P24752). Concordant with the IBA/IEA
annotations and the shared thiolase catalytic machinery.
action: ACCEPT
reason: >-
Core molecular function; ortholog transfer from human T2 is appropriate given the 15/15 DIOPT
orthology and conserved catalytic residues.
supported_by:
- reference_id: PMID:35177854
supporting_text: >-
the orthologue of the human mitochondrial acetoacetyl-CoA thiolase ACAT1, CG10932
- term:
id: GO:0016453
label: C-acetyltransferase activity
evidence_type: ISS
original_reference_id: GO_REF:0000024
qualifier: enables
review:
summary: >-
ISS annotation to the more general parent term C-acetyltransferase activity. Correct but less
informative than the specific child GO:0003985.
action: KEEP_AS_NON_CORE
reason: >-
Correct parent term; the specific acetyl-CoA C-acetyltransferase activity (GO:0003985) is the
preferred core molecular-function annotation.
- term:
id: GO:0016746
label: acyltransferase activity
evidence_type: IEA
original_reference_id: GO_REF:0000002
qualifier: enables
review:
summary: >-
InterPro-based assignment of the broad acyltransferase-activity parent term from the thiolase
domain signatures.
action: KEEP_AS_NON_CORE
reason: >-
Technically correct but uninformative; superseded by the specific thiolase term GO:0003985.
- term:
id: GO:0016747
label: acyltransferase activity, transferring groups other than amino-acyl groups
evidence_type: IEA
original_reference_id: GO_REF:0000002
qualifier: enables
review:
summary: >-
InterPro-based assignment of an intermediate acyltransferase parent term from the thiolase
InterPro signatures.
action: KEEP_AS_NON_CORE
reason: >-
Correct parent term; the specific acetyl-CoA C-acetyltransferase activity better captures the
molecular function.
# ============================================================================
# CELLULAR COMPONENT - MITOCHONDRION (CORE) / PEROXISOME (PREDICTION)
# ============================================================================
- term:
id: GO:0005739
label: mitochondrion
evidence_type: IBA
original_reference_id: GO_REF:0000033
qualifier: is_active_in
review:
summary: >-
Phylogenetic localization of Acat1 to the mitochondrion across the ACAT1/T2 orthology group.
Concordant with the direct organelle-proteomics evidence and with the mitochondrial-matrix
localization of human T2.
action: ACCEPT
reason: >-
Core cellular localization; the mitochondrion is the compartment where this thiolase acts, and
the fly experimental study describes Acat1 generating acetyl-CoA "in the mitochondria".
supported_by:
- reference_id: PMID:35177854
supporting_text: >-
KBs are used by ACAT1 to generate acetyl-CoA in the mitochondria for energy
- term:
id: GO:0005739
label: mitochondrion
evidence_type: HDA
original_reference_id: PMID:19317464
qualifier: located_in
review:
summary: >-
High-throughput organelle-proteomics (LOPIT) mapping of Drosophila embryo proteins assigns
Acat1 to the mitochondrion. Direct mass-spectrometry-based localization consistent with the
IBA annotation and the mitochondrial identity of the ACAT1/T2 subfamily.
action: ACCEPT
reason: >-
Core mitochondrial localization supported by an experimental (HDA) organelle-mapping dataset.
supported_by:
- reference_id: PMID:19317464
supporting_text: >-
we apply LOPIT, a mass-spectrometry based technique that simultaneously maps proteins to
specific subcellular compartments, to Drosophila embryos
full_text_unavailable: true
- term:
id: GO:0005739
label: mitochondrion
evidence_type: ISM
original_reference_id: PMID:22758915
qualifier: located_in
review:
summary: >-
Sequence-model (ISM) mitochondrial prediction. Redundant with the direct HDA and phylogenetic
mitochondrial annotations and consistent with them; the mitochondrion is the core localization
of this thiolase.
action: ACCEPT
reason: >-
Correct core compartment, agreeing with the HDA (LOPIT) and IBA mitochondrial annotations for the
same term.
- term:
id: GO:0005777
label: peroxisome
evidence_type: ISM
original_reference_id: PMID:22758915
qualifier: located_in
review:
summary: >-
Sequence-model (ISM) peroxisomal prediction from a Drosophila peroxisomal-proteome inventory.
This conflicts with the mitochondrial identity of the ACAT1/T2 subfamily (human T2 is a
mitochondrial-matrix protein) and with the direct LOPIT and phylogenetic mitochondrial
annotations for Acat1. The cited paper is abstract-only and states only that "five of these
predicted peroxisomal proteins" had their localization confirmed, without indicating whether
Acat1 was among them, so the prediction cannot be verified and is contradicted by stronger
mitochondrial evidence.
action: MARK_AS_OVER_ANNOTATED
reason: >-
Computational targeting-signal prediction with no verification for Acat1 and contradicted by the
mitochondrial localization of the ACAT1/T2 thiolase subfamily; peroxisomal thiolase activity in
flies belongs to distinct ACAA1-type thiolases, not the ACAT1/T2 ortholog.
supported_by:
- reference_id: PMID:22758915
supporting_text: >-
The subcellular localization of five of these predicted peroxisomal proteins was confirmed.
full_text_unavailable: true
# ============================================================================
# BIOLOGICAL PROCESS - KETONE BODY CATABOLISM / KETOLYSIS (CORE)
# ============================================================================
- term:
id: GO:0046952
label: ketone body catabolic process
evidence_type: ISS
original_reference_id: GO_REF:0000024
qualifier: involved_in
review:
summary: >-
ISS transfer from human ACAT1 (P24752) placing Acat1 in ketone body catabolism (ketolysis:
acetoacetyl-CoA + CoA -> 2 acetyl-CoA). Directly corroborated in Drosophila by the demonstration
that Acat1 is required in mushroom body neurons for mitochondrial oxidation of imported ketone
bodies to acetyl-CoA.
action: ACCEPT
reason: >-
Core biological process. The single experimental fly study identifies Acat1 as a key enzyme of
ketone-body oxidation, matching this catabolic term.
supported_by:
- reference_id: PMID:35177854
supporting_text: >-
KBs are used by ACAT1 to generate acetyl-CoA in the mitochondria for energy
- reference_id: PMID:35177854
supporting_text: >-
we targeted a key enzyme of KB oxidation
- term:
id: GO:0042182
label: ketone catabolic process
evidence_type: ISS
original_reference_id: GO_REF:0000024
qualifier: involved_in
review:
summary: >-
ISS annotation to the broader parent "ketone catabolic process". Correct in direction (ketolysis)
but less specific than ketone body catabolic process (GO:0046952).
action: KEEP_AS_NON_CORE
reason: >-
Correct but superseded by the more specific ketone body catabolic process for the core role.
# ============================================================================
# BIOLOGICAL PROCESS - L-ISOLEUCINE CATABOLISM (CORE)
# ============================================================================
- term:
id: GO:0006550
label: L-isoleucine catabolic process
evidence_type: ISS
original_reference_id: GO_REF:0000024
qualifier: involved_in
review:
summary: >-
ISS transfer from human ACAT1 (P24752). Human T2 uniquely cleaves the 2-methyl-branched
intermediate 2-methylacetoacetyl-CoA, the final thiolytic step of L-isoleucine catabolism; the
conserved fly ortholog is expected to perform the same step. Reactome (fly) places Acat1 in
"Branched-chain amino acid catabolism" (R-DME-70895), consistent with this assignment.
action: ACCEPT
reason: >-
Core biological process inferred from the well-characterized substrate specificity of the human
ortholog and supported by fly pathway curation, though no direct fly isoleucine-flux assay exists.
supported_by:
- reference_id: PMID:35177854
supporting_text: >-
the orthologue of the human mitochondrial acetoacetyl-CoA thiolase ACAT1, CG10932
# ============================================================================
# BIOLOGICAL PROCESS - ACETYL-CoA BIOSYNTHESIS (REACTION-LEVEL, NON-CORE)
# ============================================================================
- term:
id: GO:0006085
label: acetyl-CoA biosynthetic process
evidence_type: ISS
original_reference_id: GO_REF:0000024
qualifier: involved_in
review:
summary: >-
ISS annotation reflecting that thiolytic cleavage of acetoacetyl-CoA yields acetyl-CoA. This is a
reaction-level restatement of the thiolase chemistry (and matches the fly observation that Acat1
generates acetyl-CoA in neurons) rather than a distinct physiological process.
action: KEEP_AS_NON_CORE
reason: >-
Chemically defensible product of the reaction, but the physiological process core is ketone body
catabolism / isoleucine catabolism rather than generic acetyl-CoA biosynthesis.
supported_by:
- reference_id: PMID:35177854
supporting_text: >-
KBs are used by ACAT1 to generate acetyl-CoA in the mitochondria for energy
# ============================================================================
# BIOLOGICAL PROCESS - KETONE BODY BIOSYNTHESIS (KETOGENESIS DIRECTION, NON-CORE)
# ============================================================================
- term:
id: GO:0046951
label: ketone body biosynthetic process
evidence_type: NAS
original_reference_id: PMID:35177854
qualifier: involved_in
review:
summary: >-
NAS annotation to ketogenesis. The reversible thiolase can in principle contribute the
acetoacetyl-CoA-forming (condensation) step of ketone-body synthesis, and Silva et al. describe
ketogenesis via "the successive actions of a thiolase, the HMGS and the HMG-CoA lyase". However,
the direct experimental evidence in that paper for Acat1/CG10932 is its neuronal ketone-body
OXIDATION (catabolic) role; the ketogenic (biosynthetic) direction is inferred rather than
demonstrated for this gene.
action: KEEP_AS_NON_CORE
reason: >-
Biologically plausible via the reversible thiolase chemistry, but not the direction directly
demonstrated for Acat1 in the fly; the well-supported core is ketone body catabolism.
supported_by:
- reference_id: PMID:35177854
supporting_text: >-
acetyl-CoA that will be used to generate acetoacetate by the successive actions of a thiolase,
the HMGS and the HMG-CoA lyase
- term:
id: GO:0042181
label: ketone biosynthetic process
evidence_type: NAS
original_reference_id: PMID:35177854
qualifier: involved_in
review:
summary: >-
NAS annotation to the broader parent "ketone biosynthetic process" (ketogenesis direction). Same
considerations as GO:0046951: plausible for a reversible thiolase but not the direction directly
demonstrated for Acat1 in the fly study.
action: KEEP_AS_NON_CORE
reason: >-
Broad parent of ketone body biosynthetic process; inferred ketogenic direction, non-core relative
to the demonstrated catabolic role.
supported_by:
- reference_id: PMID:35177854
supporting_text: >-
acetyl-CoA that will be used to generate acetoacetate by the successive actions of a thiolase,
the HMGS and the HMG-CoA lyase
references:
- id: GO_REF:0000002
title: Gene Ontology annotation through association of InterPro records with GO terms
findings: []
- id: GO_REF:0000003
title: Gene Ontology annotation based on Enzyme Commission mapping
findings: []
- id: GO_REF:0000024
title: Manual transfer of experimentally-verified manual GO annotation data to orthologs
by curator judgment of sequence similarity
findings: []
- id: GO_REF:0000033
title: Annotation inferences using phylogenetic trees
findings: []
- id: PMID:19317464
title: Mapping organelle proteins and protein complexes in Drosophila melanogaster.
findings:
- statement: >-
LOPIT mass-spectrometry organelle mapping of Drosophila embryos assigns Acat1 to the
mitochondrion, providing direct (HDA) subcellular-localization support.
reference_section_type: ABSTRACT
reference_review:
relevance: MEDIUM
correctness: VERIFIED
review_notes: >-
Abstract-only in cache (full_text_available: false); the LOPIT method and mitochondrial
assignment underpin the HDA mitochondrion annotation. Method is verifiable from the abstract.
- id: PMID:22758915
title: An inventory of peroxisomal proteins and pathways in Drosophila melanogaster.
findings:
- statement: >-
Computational peroxisomal-proteome inventory (targeting-signal prediction) that is the source of
both the ISM mitochondrion and ISM peroxisome predictions for Acat1. Only five predicted
peroxisomal proteins were experimentally confirmed, and the abstract does not indicate whether
Acat1 was among them.
reference_section_type: ABSTRACT
reference_review:
relevance: LOW
correctness: VERIFIED
review_notes: >-
Abstract-only in cache. Citation is correct, but the peroxisomal prediction it supports is
contradicted by the mitochondrial identity of the ACAT1/T2 subfamily and the direct LOPIT
mitochondrial assignment; the peroxisome annotation is marked over-annotated.
- id: PMID:35177854
title: Glia fuel neurons with locally synthesized ketone bodies to sustain memory
under starvation.
findings:
- statement: >-
Identifies CG10932 as the Drosophila ortholog of human mitochondrial acetoacetyl-CoA thiolase
ACAT1 (DIOPT 15/15) and shows by RNAi that Acat1 is required in adult mushroom body neurons for
ketone-body oxidation, generating acetyl-CoA in mitochondria to sustain memory under starvation.
reference_section_type: RESULTS
- statement: >-
Describes ketogenesis in cortex glia as proceeding via a thiolase, HMGS and HMG-CoA lyase; the
thiolase step of ketogenesis is stated generically rather than assigned to CG10932, whereas the
gene experimentally assayed as ACAT1 is the neuronal ketone-body-oxidation enzyme.
reference_section_type: RESULTS
reference_review:
relevance: HIGH
correctness: VERIFIED
review_notes: >-
Full text available and read; directly establishes the fly Acat1 ortholog identity and its
neuronal ketone-body catabolic (oxidation) role. Supports the ketone-body-catabolism core; the
GOA NAS annotations to ketone-body BIOSYNTHESIS from this paper are the weaker reading for Acat1
and are kept as non-core.
core_functions:
- description: >-
Mitochondrial acetoacetyl-CoA thiolase (EC 2.3.1.9) catalyzing the reversible thiolytic
cleavage/condensation at the acetoacetyl-CoA node (acetoacetyl-CoA + CoA <-> 2 acetyl-CoA). In
Drosophila neurons this activity oxidizes imported ketone bodies to acetyl-CoA for mitochondrial
energy production, the ketolytic role of ketone body catabolism.
supported_by:
- reference_id: PMID:35177854
supporting_text: >-
KBs are used by ACAT1 to generate acetyl-CoA in the mitochondria for energy
- reference_id: PMID:35177854
supporting_text: >-
the orthologue of the human mitochondrial acetoacetyl-CoA thiolase ACAT1, CG10932
molecular_function:
id: GO:0003985
label: acetyl-CoA C-acetyltransferase activity
directly_involved_in:
- id: GO:0046952
label: ketone body catabolic process
locations:
- id: GO:0005739
label: mitochondrion
- description: >-
Acetoacetyl-CoA thiolase acting in the final thiolytic step of L-isoleucine catabolism, cleaving
the 2-methyl-branched intermediate 2-methylacetoacetyl-CoA into propionyl-CoA and acetyl-CoA
(inferred from the well-characterized substrate specificity of the conserved human ACAT1/T2
ortholog and fly branched-chain-amino-acid-catabolism pathway curation).
supported_by:
- reference_id: PMID:35177854
supporting_text: >-
the orthologue of the human mitochondrial acetoacetyl-CoA thiolase ACAT1, CG10932
molecular_function:
id: GO:0003985
label: acetyl-CoA C-acetyltransferase activity
directly_involved_in:
- id: GO:0006550
label: L-isoleucine catabolic process
locations:
- id: GO:0005739
label: mitochondrion
proposed_new_terms: []
suggested_questions:
- question: >-
In Drosophila, does Acat1 act physiologically in the ketogenic (acetoacetyl-CoA condensation)
direction as well as the demonstrated ketolytic (oxidation) direction, i.e. is the thiolase step of
glial ketogenesis in Silva et al. 2022 actually catalyzed by CG10932 or by a different thiolase?
- question: >-
Is the peroxisomal localization prediction for Acat1 (ISM, PMID:22758915) ever experimentally
realized, or is Acat1 exclusively mitochondrial as expected for the ACAT1/T2 subfamily?
suggested_experiments:
- description: >-
Assay recombinant Drosophila Acat1 for acetoacetyl-CoA thiolase (EC 2.3.1.9) activity in both
directions and test cleavage of 2-methylacetoacetyl-CoA, alongside a negative control for cholesterol
O-acyltransferase (EC 2.3.1.26) activity.
hypothesis: >-
Acat1 has bidirectional acetoacetyl-CoA thiolase activity and can cleave the 2-methyl-branched
isoleucine intermediate, but has no cholesterol-esterifying (SOAT) activity.
- description: >-
Determine the endogenous subcellular localization of tagged Acat1 in Drosophila tissues by
fluorescence microscopy and organelle fractionation, comparing mitochondrial versus peroxisomal
markers.
hypothesis: >-
Acat1 localizes to the mitochondrial matrix, and the peroxisomal prediction (PMID:22758915) is a
targeting-signal artifact not realized in vivo.
- description: >-
Metabolically profile ketone-body and isoleucine-pathway intermediates (acetoacetyl-CoA turnover,
2-methylacetoacetyl-CoA, tiglylglycine-equivalents) in Acat1-knockdown versus control flies under
fed and starved conditions.
hypothesis: >-
Acat1 loss impairs both neuronal ketolysis and the final thiolytic step of isoleucine catabolism,
producing accumulation of 2-methyl-branched intermediates analogous to human beta-ketothiolase
deficiency.