CCCP interferes with lysosomes by stealing their protons

What is it about?

CCCP is a type of chemical called a protonophore ("bearer of protons"), which shuttles protons from one side of a membrane to the other. The ability to shuttle protons makes CCCP useful for depolarizing mitochondria, by dissipating the mitochondrial proton gradient. However, mitochondria are not the only organelle with a proton gradient. The lysosome is an acidic organelle; by definition, this means that it is full of protons. This paper showed that CCCP interferes with lysosomal function, by dissipating their acidity.

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