We have found that granzyme B (GB)-induced apoptosis also requires reactive oxygen species resulting from the alteration of mitochondrial complex I. How GB, which does not possess a mitochondrial targeting sequence, enter this organelle is unknown. We show that GB enters the mitochondria independently of the translocase of the outer mitochondrial membrane complex, but requires instead Sam50, the central subunit of the sorting and assembly machinery that integrates outer membrane β-barrel proteins. Moreover, GB breaches the inner membrane through Tim22, the metabolite carrier translocase pore, in a mitochondrial heat-shock protein 70 (mtHsp70)-dependent manner. Granzyme A (GA) and caspase-3 use a similar route to the mitochondria. Finally, preventing GB from entering the mitochondria either by mutating lysine 243 and arginine 244 or depleting Sam50 renders cells more resistant to GB-mediated reactive oxygen species and cell death. Similarly, Sam50 depletion protects cells from GA-, GM-and caspase-3-mediated cell death. Therefore, cytotoxic molecules enter the mitochondria to induce efficiently cell death through a noncanonical Sam50-, Tim22-and mtHsp70-dependent import pathway.Cytotoxic lymphocytes eradicate pathogen-infected or transformed cells mainly through the cytotoxic granule pathway. [1][2][3][4] Among the five human granzymes (A, B, H, K and M), granzyme B (GB) triggers cell death in both a caspasedependent and caspase-independent manner, although human and mouse GB differ in their requirement for caspase activation. 5-10 GB-induced cell death also involves Bid/Bax/ Bak-mediated mitochondrial outer membrane permeabilization for the release of the apoptogenic factors cytochrome c, Smac/Diablo, Endo G, HtrA2 and AIF. 1,9-17 We have recently reported that mitochondrial reactive oxygen species (ROS) have a critical role in GB pathway by amplifying apoptogenic factor release, oligonucleosomal DNA fragmentation and lysosomal membrane rupture. 18 Mitochondrial ROS resulted from GB-mediated cleavage of NDUFV1, NDUFS1 and NDUFS2, three subunits of mitochondrial complex I. 18 How GB that does not possess a mitochondrial targeting sequence enters the mitochondria is not known. The mitochondrial nucleoid encodes only for 13 structural proteins, while the rest of the mitochondrial proteome is nuclear-encoded and transported to the mitochondria through a sophisticated protein import machinery. [19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27][28] The translocase of the outer mitochondrial membrane (TOM), the entry gate to the mitochondria, 20 passes on the cargos to the sorting and assembly machinery (SAM) complex, to the mitochondrial intermembrane space assembly (MIA) complex and to the translocases of the inner mitochondrial membrane TIM22 or TIM23 complexes for delivery to the outer membrane, the intermembrane space, the inner membrane or the matrix, respectively. [19][20][21][22]25,26,28 Unexpectedly, we found that GB mitochondrial entry is independent of the TOM-TIM23 complexes, but requires instead the Sam50 and Tim22 chann...