Reinitiation within one cell cycle of the deoxyribonucleic acid synthesis induced by simian virus 40

The infection of secondary cultures of Chinese hamster cells with simian virus 40 (SV40) induces the appearance of cells with polyploid deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) content or chromosomal component within one cell generation. The mechanism of this phenomenon was studied by the use of 5-bromodeoxyuridine (BUdR) incorporation as a DNA density marker. When cultures were treated with (14)C-BUdR and colcemide and harvested at 48 hr postinfection, only hybrid and light DNA molecules were found in control cultures, whereas in infected cultures there were also heavy molecules. The proportion of heavy DNA synthesized during the experimental period varied from 13 to 25%. It was determined by DNA-DNA hybridization that the heavy DNA consisted of cellular DNA. In radioautographic experiments, it was shown that, under the conditions used, a fraction of the infected cell population twice replicated its complete DNA content. Analysis of the kinetics indicated that the heavy DNA resulted from the reinitiation of DNA synthesis after the initial replication of the entire cell DNA. It was concluded that, after infection with SV40, a fraction of the Chinese hamster cell population undergoes two cycles of DNA synthesis without intervening mitosis.