Pyruvate dehydrogenase E1 alpha (PDHE1α or PDHA1) is the first component enzyme of the pyruvate dehydrogenase (PDH) complex (PDC) that transforms pyruvate, via pyruvate decarboxylation, into acetyl-CoA that is subsequently used by both the citric acid cycle and oxidative phosphorylation to generate ATP. As such, PDH links glycolysis and oxidative phosphorylation in normal as well as cancer cells. Herein we report that SIRT3 interacts with PDHA1 and directs its enzymatic activity via changes in protein acetylation. SIRT3 deacetylates PDHA1 lysine 321 (K321) and a PDHA1 mutant, mimicking a deacetylated lysine (PDHA1(K321R)) increases in PDH activity, as compared to the K321 acetylation mimic (PDHA1(K321Q)) or wild-type PDHA1. Finally, PDHA1(K321Q) exhibited a more transformed in vitro cellular phenotype as compared to PDHA1(K321R). These results suggest that the acetylation of PDHA1 provides another layer of enzymatic regulation, in addition to phosphorylation, involving a reversible acetyl-lysine suggesting that the acetylome, as well as the kinome, links glycolysis to respiration.