Suppression of matrix protein synthesis by herpes simplex virus in bovine smooth muscle cells

We investigated the effect of herpes simplex virus type 1 infection on the synthesis of extracellular matrix proteins by bovine smooth muscle cells. The cells supported viral replication, which reached maximum at 24 hrs post-infection. Uninfected and infected (multiplicity of infection of 5 or 20) cultures of smooth muscle cells were labeled with [14C]proline at five hrs post-infection. Incorporation of radioactivity into non-dializable protein was determined following electrophoresis of the cell-matrix and medium fractions. The synthesis of fibronectin and collagen types I and III was almost completely suppressed. The data suggest that HSV-1 infection of smooth muscle cells in vitro alters extracellular matrix synthesis.