Effect of treatment with phenobarbital on rates of synthesis of rat liver nuclear and cytoplasmic proteins

Abstract

1. Double label technique and polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis have been used to study the effect of one and two injections of phenylbarbiturate (barbiturate) on rates of synthesis of cytoplasmic and nuclear proteins in rat liver. 2. Within 2 hr following one injection with barbiturate, increases in rates of synthesis of cytoplasmic proteins of molecular weights about 68, 50–55 and 35,000, respectively, were observed. Stimulation of synthesis of low molecular weight nonhistone chromation proteins is also observed within this period. 3. The overall rates of synthesis of cytoplasmic and nuclear proteins seems to return to normal level 24 hr after one injection of barbiturate. A stimulation in rates of synthesis of some chromatin proteins was, however, first observed after 24 hr following the first barbiturate injection. 4. After 24 hr following a second barbiturate injection made 24 hr after the first one, syntheses of proteins of similar molecular weights were found to have been stimulated again.