The Ribosome Dissociation Factor and the Ribosome-Polysome Cycle
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Excerpt
We have found in Escherichia coli cells a protein factor that causes dissociation of bacterial ribosomes into their subunits (Subramanian et al., 1968). The existence of this dissociation factor (DF) was suggested by, and indeed its physiological significance depends on, the production of undissociated ribosomes by polysome runoff. It therefore seems desirable, before discussing DF, to review briefly the evidence on the nature of the products of runoff.
Our interest in these products arose from the observation that amino acid deprival causes polysome breakdown in RCstr but not in RCre1 cells of E. coli (Ron et al., 1966a). This result suggested that the free ribosomes, or possibly some other component released by runoff from polysomes, serve as effectors or as repressors in regulating an operon for ribosomal RNA (rRNA) synthesis. A step in the further definition of the products of runoff was suggested by the report that certain methods of...
