[Inhibition and induction of protein syntheses by actinomycin in the growing oocytes ofMusca domestica]

Abstract

The protein synthesis of growing oocytes ofMusca domestica L. is investigated by radioautographic and electrophoretic methods on an intermediate developmental stage (stage 3), and after the end of growth (stage 6) in the normal development and after treatment with Actinomycin. The very high RNA synthesis of the nurse cells and of the follicle epithelium of growing oocytes is completely blocked by injection of 16 Μg/g body weight Actinomycin. The protein synthesis in the euplasm of a growing oocyte is relatively high, the stage 6 shows a high protein synthesis in spite of the absence of RNA synthesis. The proteins of the ovary are separated electrophoretically on Cellogel-strips. The ratio of the newly-synthetized proteins is determined after incorporation (30 min) of¹⁴C-labelled amino acids. The protein synthesis is stimulated after 4-6 hours treatment with Actinomycin. After a longer influence of the antibiotic, synthesis of the egg-nurse cell unit decreases to below the control value. The ripe oocyte does not react autoradiographically to Actinomycin. Only some fractions of the newly-synthetized euplasmatic proteins are sensitive to treatment with Actinomycin. After intermediate incubation times with Actinomycin new proteins appear in the ovary and their synthesis is demonstrable in part even after treatment for 48 hours. There is no newly-synthetized RNA in the ripe oocyte, which, nevertheless, reacts with Actinomycin to inhibit some and to stimulate some new protein synthesis. In this case the action of the antibiotic is unknown.