Regulation of DNA Synthesis in Cultured Rat Hepatoma Cells

Abstract

Publisher Summary There is some evidence that in vitro replication of mammalian cells occurs by orderly expression of sequences of signals and events involving DNA synthesis, doubling of cell mass, and cell division. The sequence of events, which involves the “DNA-division cycle,” may be partially separable from a second sequence that constitutes the growth cycle. The latter includes the main processes of protein and RNA synthesis, which cause cell growth. The role of protein synthesis in initiation of DNA replication is discussed in this chapter. A few specific proteins have been shown to be involved in the initiation of DNA synthesis of hepatoma cells. Examples are ornithine decarboxylase and specific chromosomal proteins. It is reasonable to expect that chromosomal proteins and factors influencing modification of these proteins or the interactions between these proteins and DNA play a crucial role in initiation of DNA synthesis. The chapter reviews the changes of chromatin in hepatoma cells, in relation to the stimulation of these cells into their division.