Propofol affinity to mitochondrial membranes does not alter mitochondrial function.

The molecular mechanisms of hepatotoxicity after propofol anaesthesia have not been fully elucidated, although there is a relation with mitochondrial dysfunction. The action of propofol on mitochondrial hepatic functions in a rat model was evaluated by infusion for 4h with 25 and 62.5mg/kg/h propofol or 3.

RNA polymerase II kinetics in polo polyadenylation signal selection.

Regulated alternative polyadenylation is an important feature of gene expression, but how gene transcription rate affects this process remains to be investigated. polo is a cell-cycle gene that uses two poly(A) signals in the 3' untranslated region (UTR) to produce alternative messenger RNAs that differ in their 3'UTR length. Using a mutant Drosophila strain that has a lower transcriptional elongation rate, we show that transcription kinetics can determine alternative poly(A) site selection.