134 Information Storage and Neural Control 



The discovery by Nirenberg and Matthaei (70) of an in vitro 

 system for synthesizing protein which is dependent on the addition 

 of a messenger-RNA offers the opportunity to attack this problem 

 directly. In this system which is derived from Escherichia coli cells, 

 these workers found that tobacco mosaic virus RNA stimulated 

 the formation of TMV coat protein, indicating that the virus RNA 

 was itself the active messenger in protein synthesis. We have found 

 recently that this system also responds to the addition of poliovirus 

 RNA by producing material which will specifically precipitate 

 with poliovirus antiserum. Thus, if the poliovirus RNA specifies 

 the formation of other proteins, these should also be formed in 

 this in vitro system. 



We can speculate as to the type of protein tiiat poliovirus might 

 require to assure its own synthesis in HeLa cells. The virus con- 

 tains no nucleic acid bases (31) or amino acids (38) foreign to the 

 cell. Moreover, with tiie possible exception of guanine and cytosine 

 nucleotides, the cell contains more than enough acid-soluble 

 material to provide for the synthesis of all viral material formed. 

 Tlius some enzyme protein of a type the cell already possesses, 

 but which is either under cellular control or is located at a position 

 in the cell which is inaccessible to the virus, might be used by the 

 virus as a mechanism for escaping cellular control. 



REFERENCES 



1. Kozloff, L. M., Lute, M., and Henderson, K.: Viral Inv^asion I, 



II, III. J. Bio. Chem., 225.-51 1-546, 1957. 



2. Cohen, S. S.: Growth requirements of bacterial viruses. Bad. Rev., 



7J.-1-24, 1949. Cohen. S. S.: Studies on Controlling Mechanisms 

 in the Metabolism of Virus-Infected Bacteria. CSH Symp. Qjtant. 

 Biol., 7<§.-221-235, 1953. 



3. Luria, S. E., and Human, M. L.: Chromatin staining of bactei'ia 



during bacteriophage infection. J. Bact., 59.-551-560, 1950. 



4. Kozloff, L. M.: Origin and Fate of Bacteriophage Material. CSH 



Symp. Quant. Biol, 75;209-220, 1953. 



5. Hershey, A. D.: Bacteriophages as genetic and biochemical systems. 



Advance Virus Res., 4:25-6\, 1957. 



6. Cold Spring Harbor Symposia on Quantitative Biology, vol. 26, 



1961, in press. 



