Protein and RNA synthesis in follicles isolated from rabbit ovaries.

The in vitro synthesis of protein and RNA in follicles from mated and unmated rabbits has been studied by measuring precursor incorporation. Radioactive methionine incorporation into follicular proteins showed a transitory rise following coitus but fell to precoital levels in ovulated follicles. LH, FSH, and cyclic AMP all exerted an acute stimulatory action on the incorporation of amino acids into proteins by follicles from unmated rabbits. Radioactive uridine incorporation into follicular RNA showed the same temporal pattern of postcoital rise followed by a decline in incorporation rates in the period around ovulation. In acute incubations, FSH and cyclic AMP stimulated RNA synthesis; LH was without acute action on this process. The results of these studies suggest that a wave of follicular protein and RNA synthesis precedes ovulation and may be partly related to the preovulatory surge in gonadotropins.