Intracellular transport of ovalbumin afterin vivo endocytosis in rainbow trout liver.

The intracellular handing of a mannose-terminated glycoprotein taken up in rainbow trout liver cells by receptor-mediated endocytosis has been studied. The intracellular transport and degradation of ovalbumin (OA) were studied by means of subcellular fractionation in Nycodenz gradients and by differential centrifugation following intravenous injection of the ligand. By using OA labelled with(125)I-tyramine cellobiose ((125)I-TC), the subcellular distribution of labelled degradation products could be studied, since they are trapped intracellularly in the organelle where the degradation takes place. (125)I-TC-OA was shortly after injection (45 min) localized in a homogenous population of endosomes. Labelled degradation products firs appeared in an organelle with the same density distribution as the endosomes. In livers homogenized 2h after injection the degradation products appeared in organelles with increasing size and density. After 24h, the degradation products were recovered in at least two populations of lysosomes with a distribution profile which coincided with that of the lysosomal enzyme β-acetylglucosaminidase.The heterogeneous distribution of the late degradation products seemed not to be due to uptake of ligand in different liver cell types as only the parenchymal liver cells took up labelled OA after intravenous injection of the ligand.