Effects of insulin and IGF-I on RNA synthesis in isolated soleus muscle

The effects of insulin and insulin-like growth factor I (IGF-I) on RNA synthesis and the effect of IGF-I on polypeptide chain initiation have been studied in the isolated mouse soleus muscle. Both peptides after a 3 h incubation enhanced net incorporation of the labelled uridine into RNA to a similar extent (40% increase over basal). The maximally effective concentrations were 66 nM and 100 nM for insulin and IGF-I respectively. Actinomycin D prevented the peptides' effect on RNA synthesis without modifying their effect on protein synthesis. Furthermore IGF-I increased the rate of initiation of polypeptide chains. It is suggested that in muscle, IGF-I and insulin stimulate protein synthesis by a dual mechanism: a rapid effect on the rate of polypeptide chain initiation; a slower effect on RNA synthesis.