Cathepsin D trafficking is altered in
cancer cells, leading to increased secretion of the pro-
enzyme, which can be reinternalized by the same
cancer cells and by stromal cells. We studied
pro-cathepsin D endocytosis in two human
breast cancer cell lines (MDA-MB231, MCF-7) and in human normal fibroblasts. Pro-
enzyme uptake was studied indirectly through immunofluorescence analysis of anti-
pro-cathepsin D monoclonal antibodies internalized in living cells. Both
cancer cell lines internalized the
pro-cathepsin D-antibody complex into endosomal compartments in the presence of 10 mM
mannose-6-phosphate. Non-malignant fibroblasts, which do not secrete
pro-cathepsin D, only internalized anti-
cathepsin D antibody when purified
pro-cathepsin D was added and this endocytosis was totally inhibited by
mannose-6-phosphate.
Cathepsin D endocytosis in
cancer cells was not mediated by
lectins or another receptor binding the
cathepsin profragment. It was not due to fluid endocytosis, since another
protein pS2 secreted by MCF-7 was not endocytosed with its antibody in the same conditions. Double-immunofluorescence and confocal microscopy analyses revealed that
antibodies specific to
pro-cathepsin D (M2E8) and to the
mannose-6-
phosphate/IGFII receptor were co-internalized independently in non-permeabilized MDA-MB231 cells and MCF-7 cells, but not in fibroblasts. Moreover, when metabolically labelled
pro-cathepsin D secreted by MCF-7 or MDA-MB231 cells was incubated with homologous or heterologous non-radioactive cells, the time-dependent uptake and maturation of the pro-
enzyme into fibroblasts were totally inhibited by
mannose-6-phosphate, whereas they were not in the two
breast cancer cell lines. The percentage of mannose-6-phosphate-independent binding of radioactively labelled
pro-cathepsin D to MDA-MB231 cells at 16 degrees C was higher (7-8%) at low
pro-cathepsin D concentration than at high concentration (1.5%), indicating the presence of saturable binding site(s) at the cell surface that are different from the
mannose-6-phosphate receptors. We conclude that, in contrast to fibroblasts,
breast cancer cells can endocytose the secreted
pro-cathepsin D by a
cell surface receptor that is different from the
mannose-6-phosphate receptors or other
lectins. The nature of this alternative receptor and its significance in the action of secreted
pro-cathepsin D remain to be elucidated.