Radiation damage of nuclear protein biosynthesis in the liver and thymus of rats

It is shown that synthesis of all fractions of nuclear proteins, excepting histones, does not virtually vary in the liver and thymus of rats 30 min after γ-irradiation in a dosage of 800 rad. There has been a 1.5-fold increase in the rate of nuclear protein synthesis in the liver and a slight decrease in the thymus by the 2nd hour following irradiation. The synthesis of cytoplasmic proteins in the organs under study varies in the same manner. Histone synthesis in the liver is invariable and in the thymus, diminishes by 40 and 50% 30 and 120 min following the exposure, respectively. Probable causes of radiation disturbance of nuclear protein metabolism are discussed