If a highly specific inhibitor completely blocks the activity of RNA polymerase II in a eukaryotic cell, which of the following processes or products will be most immediately and directly absent?

Step-by-step solution

In eukaryotes, there is a clear division of labour among the three nuclear RNA polymerases. RNA polymerase II is specifically responsible for transcribing the precursor of mRNA, which is known as heterogeneous nuclear RNA (hnRNA). Therefore, inhibiting RNA polymerase II directly halts hnRNA formation. Synthesis of 28S and 18S rRNAs is carried out by RNA polymerase I, while tRNA synthesis is mediated by RNA polymerase III. Peptide bond formation is a part of translation, which would eventually stop due to a lack of