Distribution of acceptor sites for androgen-receptor complexes between transcriptionally active and inactive fractions of rat ventral prostate chromatin.

: Rat ventral prostate chromatin was separated into two main fractions by controlled digestion with micrococcal nuclease. The soluble fraction obtained after lysis of digested nuclei with EDTA (1 mmol/l), the S2 fraction, represented approximately 17% of the original nuclear DNA, and showed properties consistent with transcriptional activity, i.e. enrichment in nascent RNA, non-histone protein and endogenous RNA polymerase B activity as well as depletion in histones. The fraction sedimented after lysis of nuclei, fraction P, comprised approximately 60% of nuclear DNA, was depleted in nascent RNA, non-histone proteins and endogenous RNA polymerase B activity, but had a higher content of histones. In an attempt to relate the concentration of acceptor sites for androgen-receptor complexes with transcriptional activity, it was shown that the S2 fraction was enriched in these acceptor sites. However, if measurements were based on the intact cell the transcriptionally inactive portion contained 2.5--3 times as many 'acceptor' sites, although these sites had lower affinity for androgen-receptor complexes than had those in the transcriptionally active fraction.