Episomal and nonepisomal herpesvirus DNA in lymphoid tumor cell lines

Tumor cell lines derived from Herpesvirus saimiri (H. saimiri)- and Herpesvirus ateles (H. ateles)-induced lymphomas of New World primates and rabbits contain multiple copies of viral genomes. Partial denaturation mapping and blot hybridizations of episomal DNA from lymphoid tumor cell line No. 1670 showed that a 12.5md-fragment is missing which represents the EcoRI D- and H-fragments of virion L-DNA. However, the missing piece can be demonstrated in total cellular DNA by reassociation kinetics, possibly because it persists in integrated form. Both episomal and nonepisomal H-DNA are heavily methylated in a number of the lymphoid cell lines, and methylation may be reduced by conventional methylation inhibitors (S-adenosyl homocystein, SIBA) as well as by the tumor promoting phorbol ester TPA.