The preparation and characterization of locust vitellogenin messenger RNA and the synthesis of its complementary DNA.

Poly(A)+ (polyadenylated) RNA was isolated from vitellogenic female-locus fat-body by LiCl/urea extraction and poly(U)-Sepharose 4B affinity chromatography. Agarose-gel electrophoresis of this poly(A)+ RNA under denaturing conditions shows the presence of a high-molecular-weight species (greater than 31 S, 7100 nucleotides) as the major species, which is absent from the RNA prepared from male-locust fat-body. Inclusion of this poly(A)+ RNA in a mRNA-dependent reticulocyte-lysate system directs the synthesis of polypeptides that could be immunoprecipitated with monospecific antibodies against locust egg vitellin. DNA complementary (cDNA) to the poly(A)+ RNA was synthesized, and back-hybridization of the cDNA to its template reveals a major abundant species comprising about 45% of the total poly(A)+ RNA hybridizing with R0t 1/2 of 2 x 10(-2) mol . litre-1 . s. Abundant cDNA isolated from the total cDNA hybridizes to poly(A)+ RNA with a R0t 1/2 of 9 x 10(-3) mol . litre-1 . s. There are 9.1 x 10(3) copies of vitellogenin mRNA per cell of vitellogenic female-locust fat-body, comprising 55% of the poly(A)+ RNA and equivalent to 0.7% of total cellular RNA.