A system for study and measurement of the attachment in vitro of exogenous polyribosomes to membranes has been presented. Its main features are use of low temperature, post-microsomal supernatant, pyrophosphate and citric acid to remove ribosomes from the surface of rough endoplasmic reticulum, and a method for quantitative separation of unattached from membrane-associated polyribosomes. The following were found. (1) Rough endoplasmic reticulum, from which ribosomes had been removed by treatment with pyrophosphate and citrate, bound over 50% of added polyribosomes, whereas the untreated (or control) rough and smooth endoplasmic reticulum and the smooth endoplasmic reticulum treated with pyrophosphate-citrate did not bind polyribosomes. (2) The polyribosome-binding capacity of rough endoplasmic reticulum stripped of its ribosomes decayed upon storage of the membranes at 0-4 degrees C. The half-life of this decay was about 6 days whereas that of the polyribosome-binding capacity of hepatoma stripped rough endoplasmic reticulum was about 1.5 days. (3) Preparations of stripped rough endoplasmic reticulum after reassociation with polyribosomes in vitro were quite similar to preparations of native rough endoplasmic reticulum as viewed with the electron microscope. Evidence is presented to support the contention that association of polyribosomes with membranes was the result of polyribosomal reattachment to the membranes rather than trapping of the polyribosomes between vesicles of the membranes.

1. Pancreatic ribonuclease in dilute EDTA has been shown to condition rough-microsomal membranes from adult rat liver to accept exogenously added rat liver polyribosomes in vitro at 0-4 degrees C. Treated smooth membranes would not significantly interact with polyribosomes. 2. The conditioning process decreased the membrane RNA content and removed polyribosomes from vesicle surfaces as viewed electron-microscopically. 3. Binding to these conditioned membranes was shown to be uninfluenced by changes of temperature (0-37 degrees C) and pH (6.9-7.8) or the presence of cell sap, but was inhibited by increasing the concentration of potassium chloride. 4. Possession of a polyribosome-binding capacity by conditioned rough membranes was not dependent on adventitious materials that could be dislodged by high ionic strengths. 5. Trypsin treatment under mild conditions destroyed the binding capacity of ribonuclease-conditioned rough membranes. 6. A 2-10S residual RNA was recovered from ribonuclease-conditioned membranes, but its partial removal had no effect on the capacity of membranes to accept polyribosomes. However, some role for this residual RNA in attaching polyribosomes could not be discounted. 7. Evidence is considered that polyribosome-binding sites are intrinsic features of conditioned membranes isolated from rough-microsomal fractions, and that long-range ionic bonding is a primary factor in polyribosome interaction with these binding sites.

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Incubation of iron with isolated rat liver nuclei stimulated fragmentation of single-stranded DNA, incorporation of [3H]thymidine into DNA and the binding of 59Fe to DNA. FeCl2 was about twice as active as FeCl3. Lipid peroxidation took place in nuclei incubated with FeCl2, but not with FeCl3. Generation of reactive forms of oxygen was required for iron-mediated DNA damage, but evidence for direct interaction of reactive oxygen with DNA was not found. Apparent adducts of iron bound to DNA seemed to be formed by an enzymic mechanism.