title: Energy dependence of RNA degradation in rabbit reticulocytes.
abstract: RNA degradation in rabbit reticulocytes was partially energy dependent. Reticulocytes were incubated for 10 h in Krebs-Henseleit bicarbonate buffer that was gassed with 95% O2-5% CO2 and contained glucose (30 mM) or 2-deoxyglucose (20 mM) and 2,4-dinitrophenol (0.2 mM). The rate of RNA degradation was reduced 41% in the presence of the metabolic inhibitors. When the buffer was gassed with 95% N2-5% CO2 and no substrate was added, the disappearance of RNA was decreased 55%. The cellular ATP content was depleted either by addition of the metabolic inhibitors or by incubation under anoxic conditions. ATP depletion did not modify the ratio of ribosomal subunits + monomers to polysomes. Puromycin and cycloheximide, which increased or decreased, respectively, the proportion of ribosomal RNA in subunits + monomers, blocked protein synthesis but did not alter the rate of RNA degradation. These experiments indicated that energy depletion inhibited RNA degradation by a mechanism that did not depend on the inhibition of protein synthesis. No evidence was obtained to indicate that the ratio of subunits + monomers to polysomes affected RNA degradation.
mesh_terms: D019297:2,4-Dinitrophenol; D000255:Adenosine Triphosphate / Q000378:metabolism; D000818:Animals; D003513:Cycloheximide / Q000494:pharmacology; D003847:Deoxyglucose / Q000494:pharmacology; D004140:Dinitrophenols / Q000494:pharmacology; D004734:Energy Metabolism; D011132:Polyribosomes / Q000378:metabolism; D011691:Puromycin / Q000494:pharmacology; D012313:RNA / Q000378:metabolism*; D011817:Rabbits; D012156:Reticulocytes / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism*; D013997:Time Factors; D014475:Uncoupling Agents / Q000494:pharmacology
chemical_list: D004140:Dinitrophenols; D014475:Uncoupling Agents; D011691:Puromycin; D012313:RNA; D000255:Adenosine Triphosphate; D003513:Cycloheximide; D003847:Deoxyglucose; D019297:2,4-Dinitrophenol