SUBCELLULAR DISTRIBUTION AND SOME PROPERTIES OF THE ENZYME ACTIVITY INVOLVED IN THE BREAKDOWN OF TRITIATED LYSINE VASOPRESSIN BY BOVINE

In earlier studies it was shown that oxytocin and vasopressin were broken down by peptidases present in the neurohypophyses of the rat, pig and ox (Edwards, 1971a, b; Pli\l=s%v\ka,Thorn & Vilhardt, 1971). The present work was carried out to determine the subcellular localization of this enzymic activity with special interest in the lysosomes whose function as a mechanism of controlling excess hormone in the anterior pituitary has been suggested by Smith & Farquhar (1966). Separation of the various subcellular fractions was carried out using a differential centrifugation procedure suggested by A. Livingston (personal communication)