Open AccessPolyadenylylation and Transcription Following Fertilization
Author(s) -
Isabel Slater,
D.W. Slater
Publication year - 1974
Publication title -
proceedings of the national academy of sciences of the united states of america
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 1091-6490
pISSN - 0027-8424
DOI - 10.1073/pnas.71.4.1103
Subject(s) - human fertilization , rna , transcription (linguistics) , biology , rnase p , adenylylation , microbiology and biotechnology , biochemistry , chemistry , genetics , gene , biosynthesis , linguistics , philosophy
Polyadenylylated RNA from sea urchin embryos concomitantly labeled with [3 H]adenosine and [14 C]uridine between fertilization and the four-cell stage was used to determine whether the RNA primers prerequisite to the massive polyadenylylation known to occur after fertilization are synthesized during oogenesis or subsequent to fertilization. Characterization of this RNA and unlabeled RNA via retention on nitrocellulose membranes and poly(U)-impregnated filters, molecular hybridization with [3 H]poly(U), RNase resistance, oligo(dT)-cellulose chromatography, and size-distribution studies indicates that the poly(A) tracts synthesized after fertilization are predominantly appended to preexisting cytoplasmic primers of oogenic origin. Hence, if polyadenylylation is involved in the selective editing of presumptive genetic messages, this process is not confined to the nucleus unless a given codogenic transcript can undergo more than one cycle of adenylylation.