MULTIPLE ELEMENTS IN THE C-FOS PROTEIN-CODING REGION FACILITATE MESSENGER-RNA DEADENYLATION AND DECAY BY A MECHANISM COUPLED TO TRANSLATION

The c-fos proto-oncogene transcript is one of the most labile mammalia n mRNAs known. Rapid degradation of c-fos mRNA is mediated by both the c-fos protein-coding region and an AU-rich element in the 3'-untransl ated region. Here we present evidence that the c-fos coding region con tains multiple destabilizing elements that can function independently to facilitate both deadenylation and decay of mRNA. The ability of the se coding region destabilizing elements to direct deadenylation and de cay requires the assembly of ribosomes at the 5' end of this domain an d, most likely, translation of the message.