J. Biol. Chem., Vol. 255, Issue 19, 9105-9109, 10, 1980
Suppression of the biosynthesis of guanosine triphosphate by protein synthesis inhibitors
E Volkin, ME Boling, MH Jones, WH Lee and LM Pike
In a prior report (Pike, L.M., Khym, J.X., Jones, M.H., Lee, W.H., and
Volkin, E. (1980) J. Biol. Chem. 255, 3340-3347), it was observed that CTP
synthesis and concomitant incorporation of CMP into RNA and dCMP into DNA
were markedly reduced in cells cultured in the presence of cycloheximide
and puromycin. Experiments described here with Novikoff hepatoma cells
reveal that the purine biosynthetic pathway is similarly affected. When the
cells are subjected to cycloheximide (30 or 60 microgram/ml) or puromycin
(100 microgram/ml), there is a substantial reduction in the bioconversion
of hypoxanthine, adenosine, and deoxyadenosine into guanylate compared to
untreated cultures. Whereas synthesis (counts per min/nmol) of pool ATP was
70 to 100% of controls, that of pool GTP was 20 to 35% of controls.
Incorporation of AMP into RNA was 40 to 60% of controls, but that of GMP
was only 10 to 25% of controls. Incorporation of dAMP into DNA averaged 10%
of controls, but that of dGMP was only 4% of controls. Synthesis of
guanylates from formate by the de novo pathway was similarly reduced, but
incorporation of guanosine, which enters via kinase action alone, was not
disproportionately lowered. These results suggest that protein synthesis
inhibitors cause a severely reduced availability of newly synthesized GTP
and CTP as well as their deoxy counterparts, dGTP and dCTP, the proximal
precursors for the synthesis of RNA and DNA. However, the nanomolar levels
of all nucleoside triphosphates remain high, probably as a result of
recycling of nucleic acid breakdown products. Thus, reduced synthesis of
these compounds may restrict nucleic acid synthesis only if some sort of
compartmentation leads to a limitation of these precursors at the site(s)
of nucleic acid synthesis.