To delineate the role of peroxisomes in the pathophysiology of hypoxia-reoxygenation we examined the functions of peroxisomes and mitochondria in cultured skin fibroblasts from controls and from patients with cells lacking peroxisomes (Zellweger cells). The loss of peroxisomal functions (lignoceric acid oxidation and dihydroxyacetonephosphate acyltransferase [DHAP-AT] activities) in control cells following hypoxia and hypoxia followed by reoxygenation, suggests that peroxisomes are sensitive to oxidative injury. The sensitivity of peroxisomes to oxidative stress was compared to that of mitochondria by examining the oxidation of palmitic acid (a function of both mitochondria and peroxisomes) in control and Zellweger cell lines, following hypoxia-reoxygenation. The greater loss of activity of palmitic acid oxidation observed in control cells as compared to that seen in Zellweger cells suggests that the peroxisomal beta-oxidation system is relatively more labile to hypoxia-reoxygenation induced oxidative stress. This data clearly demonstrates the difference in the response of mitochondria and peroxisomes to oxidative stress.