The sources of ammonia used by isolated, intact rat liver mitochondria in the production of citrulline have been investigated in situ using a novel methodology based on the analysis of 13C-15N heteronuclear couplings observed by 13C NMR. Isolated mitochondria from rat liver were incubated with ornithine, 13CO3H- and 15NH4Cl, using unlabeled glutamate or glutamine as alternative, intramitochondrial nitrogen donors. The production of (7-13C, 8-15N) or (7-13C, 8-14N) citrulline was determined in situ by 13C NMR and the relative proportions of 15N- and 14N-citrullines confirmed by high resolution 13C NMR analysis of the C-7 citrulline resonance observed in perchloric acid extracts prepared at the end of the incubations. The 15N fractional enrichment of the intramitochondrial NH3 pool was manipulated either by modifying the 15N enrichment of added 15NH4Cl, or by altering the concentration of the unlabeled nitrogen donors in the incubation medium. Fractional 15N enrichments measured in the N-8 nitrogen of the resulting (7-13C) citrulline closely paralleled those of the external 15NH4Cl with minor dilutions derived from the unlabeled nitrogen contribution from the alternative substrates. In the presence of 10 mM 15NH4Cl, 10 mM glutamate contributed 4% of the citrulline N-8 nitrogen. Under similar conditions, the contribution of nitrogen from 10 mM glutamine to N-8 citrulline was 6%. These results indicate that the primary source of ammonia used for citrulline synthesis by isolated, intact rat liver mitochondria is extramitochondrial, providing also an illustration of the use of 13C-15N spin coupling patterns observed by 13C NMR, as a new tool in the study of ammonia metabolism.