Fatty-acid-binding proteins are known to occur in the cytosol of mammalian cells and to bind fatty acids and their CoA-esters. Application of the postembedding protein A-gold labeling method with antibody against the hepatic type fatty-acid-binding protein (hFABP) to cross-sections of liver cells and a newly developed gel-chromatographic immunofluorescence assay established qualitatively (1) that hFABP in mitochondria was confined to outer mitochondrial membranes, (2) the presence of this protein in microsomes and (3) that nuclei were also filled with hFABP. Quantitative data elaborated with a non-competitive ELISA confirmed these results. A significant difference to the distribution of cardiac FABP in heart muscle cells, where this type of protein was found in cytosol, matrix and nuclei, was observed (Börchers et al. (1989) Biochim. Biophys. Acta, in the press). hFABP-containing rat liver microsomes were incubated with long-chain acyl-CoAs in the presence of hFABP (isolated from rat liver cytosol) in a study on the acylation of sn-glycerol-3-phosphate and lysophosphatidic acid. Both acyltransferases were stimulated by addition of hFABP to the incubation medium. The morphological, immunochemical as well as kinetic data infer a direct interaction of hFABP with microsomal membranes in liver cells.