Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 1986 Feb 25;261(6):2536-41.

The effects of cycloheximide upon transcription of rRNA, 5 S RNA, and tRNA genes

  • PMID: 2419318
Free article

The effects of cycloheximide upon transcription of rRNA, 5 S RNA, and tRNA genes

P K Gokal et al. J Biol Chem. .
Free article

Abstract

The effects of inhibitors of protein synthesis upon transcription have been re-examined. Cycloheximide (1 microgram/ml) inhibits incorporation of uridine into RNA of P1798.S20 lymphosarcoma cells. Filter hybridization studies indicate that labeling of pre-rRNA is inhibited 60-80% after 1 h and quantitative S1 nuclease mapping reveals a corresponding decrease in the amount of cellular pre-rRNA. Cycloheximide also inhibits labeling of 5 S RNA and tRNA, but incorporation of uridine into poly(A+) RNA is unaffected. Transcription experiments carried out in nuclei from cycloheximide-treated cells indicate that the inhibitor causes a selective decrease in the activity of RNA polymerases I and III. Cell-free extracts from P1798.S20 were used to transcribe the cloned mouse rRNA gene, Syrian hamster 5 S RNA gene, and the Drosophila tRNAArg gene. Extracts from cycloheximide-treated cells were inhibited in this respect. Transcription of rRNA and 5 S RNA genes was inhibited by 90% after 2 h and 50% inhibition occurred within 20-30 min. Transcription of the tRNA gene was inhibited 75% after 2 h with a half-time of approximately 1 h. Inhibition was due neither to a direct effect of cycloheximide nor to the presence of nucleases or diffusible inhibitors of transcription. Moreover, transcription of rDNA in extracts from cycloheximide-treated cells could be restored by the addition of a partially purified initiation factor preparation. The data indicate that inhibition of protein synthesis results in rapid depletion of transcription factors that are required for initiation by RNA polymerases I and III. Among these is the glucocorticoid-regulated rDNA initiation factor designated TFIC.

PubMed Disclaimer

Publication types

LinkOut - more resources