Influence of conversion of penicillin G into a basic derivative on its accumulation and subcellular localization in cultured macrophages.

beta-Lactam antibiotics do not accumulate in phagocytes, probably because of their acidic character. We therefore synthesized a basic derivative of penicillin G, namely, 14C-labeled N-(3-dimethylamino-propyl)benzylpenicillinamide (ABP), and studied its uptake and subcellular localization in J774 macrophages compared with that of 14C-labeled penicillin G. Whereas the intracellular concentration (Ci) of penicillin G remained lower than its extracellular concentration (Ce), ABP reached a Ci/Ce ratio of 4 to 5. Moreover, approximately 50% of intracellular ABP was found associated with lysosomes after isopycnic centrifugation of cell homogenates in isoosmotic Percoll or hyperosmotic sucrose gradients. The behavior of ABP was thus partly consistent with the model of de Duve et al. (C. de Duve, T. de Barsy, B. Poole, A. Trovet, P. Tulkens, and A. Van Hoof, Biochem. Pharmacol. 23:2495-2531, 1974), in which they described the intralysosomal accumulation of weak organic bases in lysosomes. Although ABP is microbiologically inactive, our results show that beta-lactam antibiotics can be driven into cells by appropriate modification. Further efforts therefore may be warranted in the design of active compounds or prodrugs that may prove useful in the chemotherapy of intracellular infections.