Age-dependent changes of nuclear envelope protein phosphokinase and protein phosphatase activities. Significance for altered nucleo-cytoplasmic mRNA translocation during development.

Nuclear envelopes are associated with a protein phosphokinase and a phosphoprotein phosphatase, whose activities are modulated by poly(A) in an opposite manner. The activities of these enzymes were determined in nuclear ghosts from liver and oviduct of quails of different age and of different hormone status. Under optimal conditions, kinase activity was found to increase in immature animals 8-fold in response to diethylstilbestrol; co-administration of progesterone had no marked effect on enzyme activity. After the initial burst, the activity of the enzyme increased only slightly during ageing. Two proteins present in nuclear ghosts of Mr 64 000 and of Mr 106 000 are phosphorylated during the kinase reaction; both the relative and the absolute extents of phosphate incorporation into these proteins alter drastically during ageing or hormone treatment of immature animals. Like the kinase activity, the activity of protein phosphatase increased in immature animals markedly in response to hormone treatment. Thereafter the activity remained constant in liver while in oviducts the phosphatase activity dropped to 30% in both mature and old animals.