Sensitivity of rat heart pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase (PDHK) to pyruvate inhibition was tested under various conditions using pyruvate dehydrogenase complex (PDC) in mitochondria (mPDC) and in a high speed precipitate of whole tissue homogenates (hPDC). In the latter preparation pyruvate in the range of concentration 1-10 mM caused increasing inhibition of PDHK when the enzyme was prepared from animals fed ad libitum but had no effect when the enzyme was prepared from 48 h starved animals. Similar behaviour was observed in mPDC from fed and starved animals when rotenone was present, pyruvate at 1 mM concentration stimulated PDHK from hearts of fed animals but was without effect at 10 mM. When mPDC or hPDC from hearts of starved animals was incubated at 30 degrees C for 30 min, inhibition of PDHK by pyruvate was restored.