Nature Biotechnology
(2026) Cite this article
The degradation of cell membrane and extracellular proteins with lysosome-targeting chimeras (LYTACs) is limited by nonrecyclable, receptor-dependent mechanisms that shuttle proteins to lysosomes, restricting the broad use of this emerging technology. Here we developed a recyclable chimera composed of a polyzwitterion and protein of interest (POI) ligand for protein degradation. This chimera could interact with the cell membrane to trigger macropinocytosis together with the POI in a receptor-independent manner. Furthermore, it can dissociate from the POI in the acidic endocytic compartments and subsequently be exocytosed through the endoplasmic reticulum–Golgi transcytosis pathway. Ultimately, the exocytotic chimera initiates the next round of targeted protein degradation. These macropinocytosis-mediated recyclable LYTACs (McR-TACs) durably degrade the cell membrane protein (programmed cell death ligand 1) or the extracellular protein (macrophage migration inhibitory factor) in a triple-negative breast cancer mouse model, thereby inhibiting the tumor growth. Collectively, McR-TACs show the potential of leveraging natural transport pathways to create recyclable protein degraders with wide-ranging applications.
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