In situ thermodynamic characterization of chromatin and of other macromolecules during cell cycle

1988 
Abstract Differential scanning calorimetry has been carried out on native nuclei and intact cells from rat liver before and after partial hepatectomy in the temperature range between 320 and 410 K. Heat capacity profiles, properly background subtracted by means of a computerized system for data acquisition and analysis, reveal six and four thermal transitions respectively for the G0 cells and G0 nuclei. Following the induction of cell proliferation a significant enthalpy redistribution takes place among the various transitions. By comparison with the melting enthalpy and temperature for each transition being present in isolated nucleohistone, DNA, RNA and proteins and by the effect of selective enzyme digestions, unique assignment of the various transitions appears possible, pointing to a unique sequence of chromatin conformational changes following the induction of cell proliferation and prior to DNA replication. Results are discussed in terms of membrane proteins, cytoplasmic RNA and of secondary, tertiary, quaternary and quinternary DNA structures.
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