Import of apocytochrome c into the mitochondrial intermembrane space along a cytochrome c1 sorting pathway.

The question of whether cytochrome c could be functionally sorted to the mitochondrial intermembrane space along a "conservative sorting" pathway was investigated using a fusion protein termed pLc1-c. pLc1-c contains 3-fold targeting information, namely, the complete bipartite presequence of the cytochrome c1 precursor joined to the amino terminus of apocytochrome c. pLc1-c could be selectively imported into the intermembrane space either directly across the outer membrane along a cytochrome c import route or along a cytochrome c1 route via the matrix. Thus, apocytochrome c could be sorted along a conservative sorting pathway; however, following reexport from the matrix, apo-Lc1-c could not be converted to its holo counterpart. Despite the apparent similarity of structure and functional location of the heme lyases and similarity of the heme binding regions in their respective apoproteins, cytochrome c heme lyase and cytochrome c1 heme lyase apparently have different and nonoverlapping substrate specificities.