Studies with hydroxyurea. VII. Hydroxyurea and the synthesis of functional proteins.

Hydroxyurea affected neither the synthesis nor the degradation of bacterial messenger-ribonucleic acid. The proteins made by hydroxyurea-treated cells were structurally intact and fully functional. Since the expression of the lethal action of hydroxyurea requires active protein production, the data indicate that treated cells do not die as the result of the synthesis of abnormal proteins.