Purification and properties of a translation inhibitor from wheat germ

A translation inhibitor from wheat germ has been purified more than 400-fold to apparent homogeneity. The inhibitor is a basic protein with a molecular weight of 30 000. This protein effectively blocks protein synthesis in animal cell-free extracts but does not affect protein synthesis in intact cells. Inhibition occurs at a ribosome to inhibitor molar ratio of 100:1, indicating an enzymic mechanism of action. The wheat germ protein inhibits the translation of endogenous mRNA, exogenous mRNA, and poly(uridylic acid) at a step in polypeptide chain elongation and without breakdown of the polysomes. Neither the aminoacylation reaction nor mRNA degradation is affected by the inhibitor. An interesting feature of the inhibition reaction is that it requires, in addition to the wheat germ inhibitor, both ATP and tRNA. The function of these two compounds in the inhibition is presently unknown since neither the hydrolysis of the beta,gamma-pyrophosphate bond of ATP nor a modification of the tRNA can be demonstrated during the reaction.