The relationship of active renin and inactive renin (trypsin-activated angiotensin- I-forming enzyme) to sodium depletion was examined in renal and peripheral plasma and at the subcellular level in the kidneys of dogs. Subcellular fractionation was carried out by discontinuous sucrose density (1.5 and 1.6 M) centrifugation. Sodium depletion selectively caused a six- to sevenfold increase in the renal content of inactive and active renins in the original homogenate, while the subcellular distribution patterns of these enzymes were little changed. Of the total granule fractions of 1.5 M sucrose (Fl), 1.6 M sucrose (F2), and sediment (F3), approximately 80% of inactive renin was recovered in Fl, which was rich in microsomes, while about 50% of active renin was in F2. The ratio of inactive to active renin was 0.02 in Fl and 0.003 to 0.004 in F2. Sodium depletion also caused a 20-fold increase in active renin and a twofold increase in inactive renin in peripheral plasma. The renal venous-arterial concentration difference of inactive renin was statistically significant in lowsodium dogs, although it was not significant in controls. The ratio of inactive to active renin was 0.2 to 0.4 in plasma from low-sodium dogs, while it was 1.5 to 3 in plasma from control dogs. These results suggest that plasma inactive renin originates, at least in part, in the kidney.