Synthesis of Albumin and Malic Enzyme in Wheat‐Germ Lysates and Xenopus laevis Oocytes Programmed with Chicken‐Liver Messenger RNA

Abstract

Undegraded, biologically-active, polyadenylated RNA was isolated from chicken liver by a rapid, simple procedure. Liver cells were dispersed mechanically and then broken gently by controlled Dounce homogenization in the absence of detergent or RNase inhibitors. After removing lysosomes and mitochondria by centrifugation, RNA was precipitated at pH 5.2. Polyadenylated mRNA was isolated directly from the detergent-solubilized precipitate by oligo(dT)-cellulose chromatography. The resulting RNA was translated into liver-specific peptides in both the wheat germ lysate and X. laevis oocytes. Translatable albumin mRNA was detected in the liver cytoplasm of both fed 3 wk old chicks and unfed, day old chicks. Translatable malic enzyme mRNA was only detected in the livers from the fed chicks.