Physical map of the origin of defective DNA in herpes simplex virus type 1 DNA

The origin of defective DNA (dDNA) of the Patton strain of herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) was physically mapped with BamHI in the parental DNA. The dDNA obtained from virus passaged at high multiplicities of infection was resistant to cleavage with HindIII, whereas digestion with EcoRI yielded a cluster of fragments 5.4 to 5.7 megadaltons (Mdal) in size. Cleavage with BamHI gave a cluster of fragments 2.6 to 3.2 Mdal in size, plus two homogeneous, comigrating 1-Mdal fragments. One of the latter fragments contained the single EcoRI site approximately 65 base pairs from one end. Hybridization of in vitro labeled dDNA probe to EcoRI, HindIII, BamHI, and Hpa I digests of nondefective HSV-1 DNA demonstrated that, in addition to the S-region terminal repeat, only one end of the S region was involved in the generation of this class of dDNA. Thus, the dDNA probe did not hybridize to either the S region 3.0-Mdal HindIIIN fragment or a 3.0-Mdal BamHI fragment of the adjacent 8.7-Mdal HindIIIG fragment, but did hybridize to four BamHI fragments of HindIII G (approximately 5.7 Mdal). The cluster of 2.6- to 3.2-Mdal fragments obtained with BamHI digestion of dDNA appears to represent a novel junction between the termination of dDNA adjacent to the 3.0-Mdal BamHI fragment in HindIII G and the 2.0- to 2.3-Mdal BamHI fragment terminal in HSV-1 DNA.