EFFECT OF UREA, THIOUREA, PHENYLTHIOUREA AND THIOURACIL ON THE OXYGEN CONSUMPTION OF BLOCKED AND ACTIVE EMBRYONIC CELLS

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Abstract
An intensive study was made on the effects of urea, thiourea, phenylthiourea and thiouracil on the oxygen consumption of Grasshopper Melanoplus differentialis embryos with cells mitotically active and blocked. In general low concns. of these reagents produce stimulation while higher concns. produce inhibition of the O2 consumption of both blocked and active cells. Urea alone produces a differential effect in that blocked embryos are little affected by high concns. while active embryos are irreversibly inhibited. The relative effectiveness (in decreasing order) of the compounds upon the oxygen consumption of blocked and active cells is, thiouracil, phenylthiourea, thiourea and urea, while recovery seems to work in the opposite order. Suggestions are made as to the possible significance of Cu in determining the basic reaction of these compounds.