Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/17/84; site bcsaic.UUCP Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!cbosgd!ihnp4!mhuxn!mhuxr!mhuxt!houxm!vax135!cornell!uw-beaver!fluke!ssc-vax!bcsaic!michaelm From: michaelm@bcsaic.UUCP (michael b maxwell) Newsgroups: net.bio Subject: Protein synthesis in red blood cells Message-ID: <371@bcsaic.UUCP> Date: Tue, 12-Nov-85 15:34:10 EST Article-I.D.: bcsaic.371 Posted: Tue Nov 12 15:34:10 1985 Date-Received: Thu, 14-Nov-85 20:41:24 EST Organization: Boeing Computer Services AI Center, Seattle Lines: 19 From Scientific American article "RNA" Oct. 1985, pg. 70: > ...in human beings only red blood cells make hemoglobin... My question is, how do they do this? I seem to remember that rbc's are anucleate, at least in the form that they float around in the blood stream. Some possible answers: 1. Rbc's make hemoglobin (and other proteins) only when they are being produced in the marrow; 2. Rbc's contain some DNA, even though they're anucleate; 3. Rbc's don't have any DNA, but they use the mRNA that they "inherited" (but I seem to remember that the lifetime of mRNA in a cell is exceedingly short). Any answers? I also seem to recall that the lifetime of an rbc is quite short, as compared with that of other cells in the body. Is this related with their being anucleate? -- Mike Maxwell Boeing Artificial Intelligence Center ...uw-beaver!uw-june!bcsaic!michaelm