Rabbit alveolar macrophages which were treated at 0°C with phenylarsine oxide and then incubated at 37°C for 10 rain exhibited a two-to threefold increase in surface receptor activity for macroglobulin.protease complexes, diferric transferrin, and mannoseterminal glycoproteins. Analysis of the concentration-dependence of ligand binding indicated that changes in ligand-binding activity were due to changes in receptor number rather than alterations in ligand-receptor affinity. Surface receptor number could also be increased by treatment of cells with three other sulfhydryl reagents, N-ethylmalemide, p-chloromercurobenzoate, and iodoacetic acid. The increase in receptor activity was maximal after 10 min and decreased over the next hour. This decrease in cell-associated receptor activity was due to the release of large membrane vesicles which demonstrated a uniform buoyant density by isopycnic sucrose gradient centrifugation. Treatment of cells with phenylarsine oxide did not decrease the cellular content of lactate dehydrogenase or/~-galactosidase, indicating that cell integrity was maintained and lysosomal enzyme release did not occur. Our studies indicate that phenylarsine oxide treatment in the presence of extracellular Ca 2+ results in the fusion of receptor-containing vesicles with the cell surface.Studies indicate the existence of intracellular pools of plasma membrane receptors which can be recruited or exteriorized to the cell surface. These intracellular pools are thought to play a role in the recycling of membrane receptors. To date, intracellular pools of receptors have been demonstrated for asialoglycoproteins (1), mannose-terminal glycoproteins (2), insulin (3), transferrin (Tf) ~ (4) and a-macroglobulin, protease complex (aM-P) (5), but not for low density lipoprotein receptors in fibroblasts (6) or for asialoglycoprotein receptors in cultured hepatoma cells (7). Examination of thin sections of cells by electron microscopy using anti-receptor antibodies (8) or homogenization or cells followed by subcellular fractionation (4) indicates that the intracellular reservoir of asialoglycoprotein or Tf receptors is associated with a unique ~Abbreviations used in this paper: HBSS, Hanks' balanced salt solution; MAN-BSA, mannose-bovine serum albumin; MEM, minimal essential medium; aM.'ZSI-T, a-macroglobulin.~251-trypsin complex; aM-P, c~-macroglobutin, protease complex; NEM, N-ethylmalemide; PAO, phenylarsine oxide; PCMB, p-chloromercurobenzoate; Tf(Feh, diferric transferrin. low buoyant density organelle which may also contain recently internalized ligands. The biochemical properties of the intracellular compartment(s) containing the receptors are unclear.During a study of the effect of sulfhydryl reagents on endocytosis, we observed that treatment of alveolar macrophages with phenylarsine oxide (PAO), a vicinyl sulfhydryl reagent, resulted in an increase in the binding of a-macroglobulin. ~25I-trypsin complex (aM. 12~I-T) to cell surface receptors. In this study we found that treatment of macrophages...