A population of rat liver lysosomes responsible for the selective uptake and degradation of cytosolic proteins.

Two populations of rat liver lysosomes can be distinguished on the basis of their density. A major difference between these populations is that one contains the heat shock cognate protein of 73 kDa (hsc73) within the lysosomal lumen. The lysosomal fraction containing hsc73 exhibits much higher efficiencies in the in vitro uptake and degradation of glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase and ribonuclease A, two well established substrates of the selective lysosomal pathway of intracellular protein degradation. Preloading of the lysosomal population that is devoid of lumenal hsc73 with hsc73 isolated from cytosol activated the selective transport of substrate proteins into these lysosomes. Furthermore, treatment of animals with leupeptin, an inhibitor of lysosomal cathepsins, or 88 h of starvation also increased the amount of hsc73 within their lysosomal lumen, and these in vivo treatments also activated the selective transport of substrate proteins in vitro. Thus, the hsc73 located within lysosomes appears to be required for efficient uptake of cytosolic proteins by these organelles. The difference in hsc73 content between the lysosomal populations appears to be due to differences in their ability to take up hsc73 combined with differences in the intralysosomal degradation rates of hsc73. The increased stability of hsc73 in one population of lysosomes is primarily a consequence of this lysosomal population's more acidic pH.