Receptor-mediated endocytosis of retinol-binding protein by liver parenchymal cells: interference by radioactive iodination.

Retinol-binding protein (RBP) was iodinated directly by radio-iodine substitution on the tyrosyl residues by the sodium hypochlorite (NaOCl) or the Enzymobead (EB) methods, or indirectly by linkage of 125I-tyramine-cellobiose (TC) or 125I-N-succinimidyl-3-(4- hydroxyphenyl)propionic acid ester (SHPP) adduct on to free amino residues of RBP. Binding, uptake and degradation of iodinated RBP were studied in isolated rat and rabbit liver parenchymal cells. The amount of ligand bound to cells at 4 degrees C was dependent on the type of labelling, in that the 125I-TC ligand was bound to a lesser extent than NaClO-labelled 125I-RBP, EB-labelled 125I-RBP and 125I-SHPP-RBP. At 37 degrees C, the 125I-SHPP-RBP and the EB-labelled 125I-RBP became cell-associated more rapidly than the other two ligands. The higher cell association at 37 degrees C than at 4 degrees C suggests that internalization of the ligand occurred at the higher temperature. The degradation of the ligands was also different. The EB-labelled 125I-RBP, the 125I-TC-RBP and the 125I-SHPP-RBP showed an apparent lag phase before a steady increase in acid-soluble radioactivity was observed. Much less of EB-labelled 125I-RBP and 125I-TC-RBP were degraded (about 6%) than of the other two ligands (about 16%) after 120 min. About 50% of the acid-soluble radioactivity in these experiments could be accounted for by degradation in the medium, suggesting that about half of the degradation observed was intracellular. The present study therefore shows that the different labelling techniques yield varying estimates of the cellular handling of RBP. In addition, a rapid release of RBP was observed in experiments where cells were pulsed with radioactive RBP at 4 degrees C, washed and incubated further at 37 degrees C. Between 50% and 70% was released after 5 min of incubation. By increasing the temperature during the pulse to 37 degrees C, or by lowering the temperature during the chase to 4 degrees C, much less RBP was released from the cells. These data suggest that the release process represents recycling of internalized ligand from an early endosome.