scs is the only enzyme in the citric acid cycle that catalyzes a reaction in which a nucleoside triphosphate (gtp or atp) is formed by substrate-level phosphorylation. research studies have shown that "e. coli" scss can catalyze either gtp or atp formation. however, mammals possess different types of scss that are specific for either gtp (g-scs) or atp (a-scs) and are native to different types of tissue within the organism. an interesting study using pigeon cells showed that gtp specific scss were located in pigeon liver cells, and atp specific scss were located in the pigeon breast muscle cells. further research revealed a similar phenomenon of gtp and atp specific scss in rat, mouse, and human tissue. it appears that tissue typically involved in anabolic metabolism (like the liver and kidneys) express g-scs, whereas tissue involved in catabolic metabolism (like the brain, the heart, and muscular tissue) express a-scs.