Chromosomes of amphibian oocytes as a model for gene expression: significance of lampbrush loops.

Amphibian lampbrush chromosome loops exhibit morphological variability in their RNP matrix. The biological significance of such variability remains unknown. In order to approach this problem, the structural organization of each RNP matrix type was analyzed in relation to transcriptional and post-transcriptional processes. First, autoradiographic and transcription inhibition studies in conjunction with macromolecular spread analysis revealed a particular transcription pattern in the most typical loops, i.e. the globular loops. This pattern was characterized by asynchronous variations in RNA synthesis in the different transcription units present in a given loop. Second, morphological and experimental studies provided evidence that the typical morphologies of different RNP matrices were interconvertible and that the differences between the different RNP matrices resulted from various degrees of tightness in packaging of transcription products. In particular, analysis of thermic-shock-induced changes in the structure of lampbrush chromosomes enabled us to visualize the progressive disorganization of dense RNP matrices into globular, granular and normal matrices. Furthermore, these studies suggested that changes in post-transcriptional processes might play a determining role in the specific morphology of the loops. In particular, the kinetics of each of these different processes, related to one another and/or proteins specific to one or another of these processes, might determine the morphological appearance of the loops. The immunological approach revealed that specific nuclear proteins might therefore interfere with each of these processes. Third, the problem of a possible relationship between the specific morphologies of lateral loops and the expression of particular DNA sequences was approached at the molecular level.