Macrophage antimicrobial activity: evidence for participation by lysosomes in the killing of Saccharomyces cerevisiae by normal resident macrophages.

Ammonium chloride added to normal resident mouse peritoneal macrophages reduced the rate of killing of ingested Saccharomyces cerevisiae. It is suggested that this is attributable to the inhibition by ammonia of phagosome-lysosome fusion or of lysosomal protein degradation and that, consequently, lysosomal mechanisms contribute to the normal killing of these yeasts.