Adenovirus DNA is associated with the nuclear matrix of infected cells

Viral DNA was found to be tightly associated with the nuclear matrix from HeLa cells lytically infected with human adenovirus type 5. The bound viral DNA, like cell DNA, was resistant to nonionic detergent and to extraction with high-salt (2 M NaCl) solution. However, whereas over 95% of the cell DNA was recovered in the matrix fraction, the amount of associated viral DNA varied during infection. Throughout the lytic cycle, the amount of matrix-associated adenovirus type 5 DNA increased until it reached a plateau level at 20 to 24 h after infection. At this stage, the matrix-bound DNA represented 87% of the total viral DNA; after this stage, additional newly synthesized viral DNA accumulated as non-matrix-associated DNA. DNase digestion studies revealed that all viral DNA sequences were equally represented in the matrix-bound DNA both early and late in infection; thus, unlike cell DNA, there seem to be no preferred attachment sites on the viral genome. An enrichment of viral DNA relative to cell DNA was found in the matrix-associated DNA after extensive DNase I digestion. This finding, together with an in situ hybridization study, suggests that the viral DNA is more intimately associated with the nuclear matrix than is cell DNA and probably does not exist in extended loops.