In vitro DNA replication by cytoplasmic extracts from cells infected with African swine fever virus

A cell-free system that catalyzes DNA replication was prepared from cytoplasmic extracts of Vero cells infected with African swine fever virus (ASFV). The cells were permeabilized with lysolecithin and disrupted by mild mechanical action and the nuclei were removed by low-speed centrifugation. Extracts prepared from infected cells at the time of maximal DNA replication incorporated [alpha-32P]dTTP into acid-insoluble material that was sensitive to DNase and resistant to RNase. The reaction was inhibited by phosphonoacetic acid, an inhibitor of ASFV-specific DNA polymerase. Extracts from mock-infected cells had a negligible activity. Micrococcal nuclease-treated extracts were able to replicate added virion DNA or viral replicative DNA. An increase in the mass of DNA detected by ethidium bromide staining and by dot blot hybridization with ASFV DNA showed that the incorporation was due to true replication. Plasmid DNA was also replicated, which indicates that ASFV-specific DNA polymerase does not require a virus-specific origin of replication. The pattern of fragments generated by EcoRI digestion of the in vitro product was characteristic of viral replicative DNA. Hybridization with a recombinant plasmid containing a terminal fragment of ASFV DNA confirmed the presence of dimer terminal ASFV fragments presumably generated from concatemeric replicative intermediates.