Variation in Properties of Plaque Progeny of PARA (Defective Simian Papovavirus 40)-Adenovirus 7

One hundred and twelve progeny from double plaque-purified clones were derived from the original PARA (defective simian papovavirus 40)-adenovirus 7 population. These progeny were found to differ in their oncogenic potential in newborn hamsters with progeny from 20 clones not inducing any tumors during 1 year of observation. The varying tumorigenicity of the individual clonal progeny was not related to the titer of PARA (particle aiding replication of adenovirus) in the inoculum. There was a perfect correlation between the tumor antigen content of the tumor cells and the antibody response of the tumor-bearing host. The tumors containing both adenovirus and simian papovavirus 40 (SV40) tumor antigens appeared earlier than those carrying only SV40 tumor antigen. Progeny from clones which induced mixed tumors also produced tumors which contained only SV40 tumor antigen. Three variants of PARA were isolated which induced the synthesis of SV40 tumor antigen in the cytoplasm of infected simian cells; all other clones yielded progeny which induced synthesis of SV40 tumor antigen in the nucleus.     

Quantitative Characteristics of the Transformation of Hamster Cells by PARA (Defective Simian Virus 40)-Adenovirus 7

An in vitro method for the quantitative measurement of transformation in hamster embryo fibroblasts by the PARA [defective simian virus 40 (SV40)]-adenovirus 7 hybrid has been developed. Transformation by PARA particles followed one-hit kinetics with a ratio of 1 focus-forming unit per 250 plaque-forming units. The method of viral adsorption had a direct effect upon the total number of foci which developed but not on the quantitative aspects of this assay. A fluorescent-focus assay was developed which provided a direct correlation of the observed morphological transformation and the presence of the PARA genome. This fluorescent-focus assay utilized detection of the SV40 tumor antigen, which was present in all foci transformed by PARA. Single foci induced by PARA were isolated and grown into cell lines. Two types of foci were observed and isolated; the first contained cells having a cuboidal or SV40-type morphology, and the second consisted of epithelial or adenovirus-type transformed cells. Both types contained the SV40 tumor and SV40 surface antigens as determined by the indirect fluorescence technique; however, only the epithelial cells contained the adenovirus 7 tumor antigen. All five cell lines which were injected into weanling Syrian hamsters were found to be oncogenic. These cell lines induced antibodies to both SV40 and adenovirus 7 tumor antigens in tumor-bearing animals.     

Nonidentity of Some Simian Virus 40-induced Enzymes with Tumor Antigen

The complement-fixing tumor (T) antigen induced by simian virus 40 (SV40) has been prepared from SV40-infected cell cultures, from infected cell cultures treated at the time of infection with 1-beta-d-arabinofuranosylcytosine (ara-C), and from SV40-transformed cells. Upon partial purification, the T antigen exhibited the following properties: it was tightly adsorbed by calcium phosphate gel, it was precipitated by acetic acid at pH 5 or by ammonium sulfate at about 20 to 32% saturation, and it had a molecular weight greater than 250,000, as estimated by Sephadex G-200 gel chromatography. In contrast, deoxycytidylate (dCMP) deaminase, thymidylate (dTMP) kinase, and thymidine (dT) kinase were less strongly bound to calcium phosphate and were not precipitated at pH 5; these enzymes also had much lower molecular weights than the T antigen, as did dihydrofolic (FH(2)) reductase. Furthermore, higher ammonium sulfate concentrations were required to precipitate dCMP deaminase, dTMP kinase, and FH(2) reductase activities than to precipitate the T antigen. Another difference was that the T antigen was not stabilized, but dCMP deaminase, dTMP kinase, and dT kinase, were stabilized, respectively, by dCTP, dTMP, and dT or dTTP. Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) polymerase activity resembled the T antigen in adsorption to calcium phosphate, in precipitation by ammonium sulfate or at pH 5, and in the rate of inactivation when incubated at 38 C. However, the polymerase activity could be partly separated from the T antigen by Sephadex G-200 gel chromatography. The cell fraction containing partially purified T antigen also contained a soluble complement-fixing antigen (presumably a subunit of the viral capsid) which reacted with hyperimmune monkey sera. The latter antigen was present in very low titers or absent from cell extracts prepared from SV40-infected monkey kidney cell cultures which had been treated with ara-C at the time of infection, or from SV40-transformed mouse kidney (mKS) or hamster tumor (H-50) cells. The T antigen, however, was present in usual amounts in SV40-transformed cells or ara-C treated, infected cells.     

Association of Simian Virus 40 T Antigen with Simian Virus 40 Nucleoprotein Complexes

Viral nucleoprotein complexes were extracted from the nuclei of simian virus 40 (SV40)-infected TC7 cells by low-salt treatment in the absence of detergent, followed by sedimentation on neutral sucrose gradients. Two forms of SV40 nucleoprotein complexes, those containing SV40 replicative intermediate DNA and those containing SV40 (I) DNA, were separated from one another and were found to have sedimentation values of 125 and 93S, respectively. [(35)S]methioninelabeled proteins in the nucleoprotein complexes were analyzed by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. In addition to VP1, VP3, and histones, a protein with a molecular weight of 100,000 (100K) is present in the nucleoprotein complexes containing SV40 (I) DNA. The 100K protein was confirmed as SV40 100K T antigen, both by immunoprecipitation with SV40 anti-T serum and by tryptic peptide mapping. The 100K T antigen is predominantly associated with the SV40 (I) DNA-containing complexes. The 17K T antigen, however, is not associated with the SV40 (I) DNA-containing nucleoprotein complexes. The functional significance of the SV40 100K T antigen in the SV40 (I) DNA-containing nucleoprotein complexes was examined by immunoprecipitation of complexes from tsA58-infected TC7 cells. The 100K T antigen is present in nucleoprotein complexes extracted from cells grown at the permissive temperature but is clearly absent from complexes extracted from cells grown at the permissive temperature and shifted up to the nonpermissive temperature for 1 h before extraction, suggesting that the association of the 100K T antigen with the SV40 nucleoprotein complexes is involved in the initiation of SV40 DNA synthesis.     

Role of the Innate Immune Response and Tumor Immunity Associated with Simian Virus 40 Large Tumor Antigen

We examined properties of the innate immune response against the tumor-specific antigen simian virus 40 (SV40) large tumor antigen (Tag) following experimental pulmonary metastasis in naive mice. Approximately 14 days after mKSA tumor cell challenge, expression of inflammatory mediators such as tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), interleukin-2 (IL-2), and RANTES was upregulated in splenocytes harvested from mice, as assessed by flow cytometry and antibody array assays. This response was hypothesized to activate and induce tumor-directed NK cell lysis since IL-2-stimulated NK cells mediated tumor cell destruction in vitro. The necessary function of NK cells was further validated in vivo through selected antibody depletion of NK cells, which resulted in an overwhelming lung tumor burden relative to that in animals receiving a control rabbit IgG depletion regimen. Interestingly, mice achieved increased protection from experimental pulmonary metastasis when NK cells were further activated indirectly through in vivo administration of poly(I:C), a Toll-like receptor 3 (TLR3) agonist. In a separate study, mice receiving treatments of poly(I:C) and recombinant SV40 Tag protein immunization mounted effective tumor immunity in an established experimental pulmonary metastasis setting. Initiating broad-based immunity with poly(I:C) was observed to induce a Th1 bias in the SV40 Tag antibody response that led to successful antitumor responses not observed in animals treated only with poly(I:C) or SV40 Tag. These data have direct implications for immunotherapeutic strategies incorporating methods to elicit inflammatory reactions, particularly NK cell-driven lysis, against malignant cell types that express a tumor-specific antigen such as SV40 Tag.Considerable interest has been directed toward the role innate immunity plays in reducing malignant growth and progression. Although the innate system by broad definition is not endowed with the antigen specificity and memory recall of adaptive immunity, natural killer (NK) cells are an innate effector population that shares most properties with the adaptive arm of the immune system, excluding receptor rearrangement (28). Interestingly, NK cells can be employed to directly target and destroy malignant cell types through diverse pathways that include tumor major histocompatibility complex class I (MHC-I) loss and upregulation of stress-inducible protein ligands for the NK cell activating receptor NKG2D (24, 29). Much effort is under way in human clinical trials to manipulate NK cell properties for directed therapies against cancer (13, 29).One strategy in eliciting innate immunity in general involves activating the Toll-like receptor (TLR) family, which are preferentially expressed by innate effectors such as NK cells, macrophages, and dendritic cells (DCs) (26). TLR ligands include a variety of pathogen-associated molecular patterns with differing downstream responses based on the cell type involved and specific TLR activated. In TLR-expressing cells, signal transduction pathways follow a MyD88-independent course to produce type I interferons (IFNs) (e.g., TLR3) or a MyD88-dependent pathway that results in the production of proinflammatory cytokines such as tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), interleukin-1 (IL-1), and IL-6 and expression of costimulatory molecules such as CD40, CD80, and CD86 (e.g., TLR4 and TLR9) (2, 12, 23, 26). In the case of TLR3, activation by poly(I:C) causes DCs and additional accessory cells to secrete type I interferons and IL-12, activating NK cells and prompting NK cell secretion of IFN-γ among other effects (14, 20). Ultimately, modulation of TLR activation results in the generation of a range of cytokines that promote inflammation, Th1 bias, and NK cell-directed killing that can be utilized in a beneficial manner for tumor treatment strategies.TLR agonist incorporation alongside vaccine strategies has resulted in promising results in mouse models of cancer (12). Indeed, the TLR7 agonist imiquimod is an effective FDA-approved topical compound used to treat superficial basal-cell carcinoma and external genital warts (9). However, to our knowledge, modulating TLR activity while also incorporating recombinant simian virus 40 (SV40) large tumor antigen (Tag) protein immunizations in a therapeutic tumor setting has not been previously reported. SV40 Tag is a clinically relevant tumor-specific antigen that has been shown to be expressed by a number of human malignancies, including malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM), and represents a potential target for immunotherapeutic strategies.Our laboratory has previously defined a unique role for antibody-dependent cell-mediated cytotoxicity (ADCC) reactions—specific against SV40 Tag—promoting cytotoxic T-lymphocyte (CTL) activity in response to neoantigens through cross-presentation of tumor cell debris in a model of experimental pulmonary metastasis (16, 17). In this report, we analyze the role of innate immunity in mediating tumor cell lysis during the early course of tumorigenesis in the absence of vaccination. Overall, we find that activated NK cells are necessary effector cells in achieving antitumor reactions and providing partial tumor immunity during the onset of tumorigenesis and that these functioning NK cells are likely activated in vivo due to inflammation as a result of tumor growth and progression. The burden of tumor challenge could be further reduced in naive animals with the indirect activation of NK cells using poly(I:C) as a TLR3 agonist prior to and during malignant dissemination. Interestingly, in an established pulmonary tumor setting, therapeutic treatment of mice with poly(I:C) and recombinant SV40 Tag resulted in enhanced protection that was not observed using poly(I:C) or SV40 Tag alone. One effect of instituting poly(I:C) treatment alongside SV40 Tag immunizations was a Th1 skewing of the SV40 Tag IgG antibody response that correlated with therapeutic tumor protection.Our results have direct implications for the prevention and treatment of malignancies, such as MPM, that express the SV40 Tag oncoprotein. Combining specific aspects of innate and adaptive immunity by targeting both NK cells and humoral activity against SV40 Tag, respectively, represents a novel and clinically significant immunotherapeutic strategy for potential use in patients.     

Binding of p110 Retinoblastoma Protein Inhibits Nuclear Import of Simian Virus SV40 Large Tumor Antigen

Nuclear import of the simian virus 40 large tumor antigen (T-ag) is dependent on its nuclear localization signal (NLS) within amino acids 126–132 that is recognized by the importin α/β1 heterodimer, as well as a protein kinase CK2 site at serine 112 upstream of the NLS, which enhances the interaction ∼50-fold. Here we show for the first time that T-ag nuclear import is negatively regulated by N-terminal sequences (amino acids 102–110), which represent the binding site (BS) for the retinoblastoma (Rb) tumor suppressor protein (p110^Rb). Quantitative confocal laser scanning microscopic analysis of the transport properties of T-ag constructs with or without Rb binding site mutations in living transfected cells or in a reconstituted nuclear transport system indicates that the presence of the RbBS significantly reduces nuclear accumulation of T-ag. A number of approaches, including the analysis of T-ag nuclear import in an isogenic cell pair with and without functional p110^Rb implicate p110^Rb binding as being responsible for the reduced nuclear accumulation, with the Ser¹⁰⁶ phosphorylation site within the RbBS appearing to enhance the inhibitory effect. Immunoprecipitation experiments confirmed association of T-ag and p110^Rb and dependence thereof on negative charge at Ser¹⁰⁶. The involvement of p110^Rb in modulating T-ag nuclear transport has implications for the regulation of nuclear import of other proteins from viruses of medical significance that interact with p110^Rb, and how this may relate to transformation.     

Simian Virus 40-Host Cell Interactions II. Cytoplasmic and Nucleolar Accumulation of Simian Virus 40 Virion Protein

We have used immunofluorescence in parallel with transmission and scanning electron microscopy to characterize the unusual cytoplasmic and nucleolar accumulation of Simian virus 40 (SV40) virion protein (C antigen) at restrictive temperatures (39 to 41 C) in monkey cells infected with a temperature-sensitive mutant of SV40 defective in virion assembly, tsB11. Cytoplasmic and nucleolar accumulation of C antigen did not occur in wild-type-infected cells at any temperature. Wild-type- and tsBll-infected cells were not distinguishable at 33 C by immunofluorescence or electron microscopy. Temperature-shift experiments using metabolic inhibitors of DNA (cytosine arabinonucleoside, 20 mug/ml), RNA (actinomycin D, 5 mug/ml), and protein synthesis (cycloheximide, 2 x 10(-4) to 10 x 10(-4) M) were used to investigate the requirements for ongoing DNA, RNA, and protein synthesis in the distribution of virion protein between the nucleus, nucleolus, and cytoplasm. The transport of C antigen from the nucleolus and cytoplasm into the nucleus was complete after a temperature shift-down (41 and 39 to 33 C). Limited virus particle formation occurred after the shift-down in the presence of actinomycin D and cycloheximide, indicating some of the 39 to 41 C synthesized virion protein could be used for capsid assembly at 33 C in the absence of further virion protein synthesis. Nucleolar and cytoplasmic accumulations of C antigen occurred in the absence of drugs after a shift-up (33 to 39 C and 41 C) indicating a continuous requirement for the tsB11 mutant function. Furthermore, the virion protein synthesized at 33 C remained confined to the nucleus when the cells were shifted to 39 and 41 C in the presence of actinomycin D or cycloheximide. In the presence of cytosine arabinonucleoside, however, the virion protein accumulated in large aggregates in the nucleus and nucleolus after the shift-up, but did not migrate into the cytoplasm as it did in drug-free tsB11-infected control cells. Colchicine (10(-3) M) had no effect on the abnormal accumulation of C antigen during shift-up or shift-down experiments suggesting that microtubular transport plays little if any role in the abnormal transport of tsB11 virion protein from cytoplasm to nucleus. Although virus particles were never observed by electron microscopy and V antigen was not detected by immunofluorescence at 39 or 41 C in tsB11-infected cells, dense amorphous accumulations were formed in the nucleoli and cytoplasm. We suggest that the tsB11 function is continuously required for the normal transport of SV40 virion protein between the cytoplasm, nucleolus, and nucleus and for the assembly of capsids and virions. Several possible mechanisms for the altered tsB11 function or protein are discussed. One of the virion proteins may also be involved in some presently undetermined nucleolar function during SV40 productive infection.     

Alignment of the Genome of Monkey B-Lymphotropic Papovavirus to the Genomes of Simian Virus 40 and BK Virus

We located the origin of DNA replication of African green monkey B-lymphotropic papovavirus DNA by analyzing pulse-labeled form I DNA. With the replication origin used as a reference point, the B-lymphotropic papovavirus genome was aligned with the genomes of simian virus 40 and BK virus from DNA homology between specific fragments hybridized under low-stringency conditions. From the results of these experiments, it was possible to deduce the correlation between the physical and functional maps of the B-lymphotropic papovavirus genome.     

Properties of Simian Virus 40 Rescued from Cell Lines Transformed by Ultraviolet-Irradiated Simian Virus 40

Simian virus 40 (SV40) strains have been rescued from various clonal lines of mouse kidney cells that had been transformed by ultraviolet (UV)-irradiated SV40. To learn whether some of the rescued SV40 strains were mutants, monkey kidney (CV-1) cells were infected with the rescued virus strains at 37 C and at 41 C. The SV40 strains studied included strains rescued from transformed cell lines classified as "good," "average," "poor," and "rare" yielders on the basis of total virus yield, frequency of induction, and incidence of successful rescue trials. Four small plaque mutants isolated from "poor" yielder lines and fuzzy and small plaque strains isolated from an "average" and a "good" yielder line, respectively, were among the SV40 strains tested. Virus strains rescued from all classes of transformed cells were capable of inducing the transplantation antigen, and they induced the intranuclear SV40-T-antigen, thymidine kinase, deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) polymerase, and cellular DNA synthesis at 37 C and at 41 C. With the exception of four small plaque strains rescued from "poor" yielders, the rescued SV40 strains replicated their DNA and formed infectious virus with kinetics similar to parental SV40 at either 37 or 41 C. The four exceptional strains did replicate at 37 C, but replication was very poor at 41 C. Thus, only a few of the rescued virus strains exhibited defective SV40 functions in CV-1 cells. All of the virus strains rescued from the "rare" yielder lines were similar to parental SV40. Several hypotheses consistent with the properties of the rescued virus strains are discussed, which may account for the significant variations in virus yield and frequency of induction of the transformed cell lines.     

The Replication Protein A Binding Site in Simian Virus 40 (SV40) T Antigen and Its Role in the Initial Steps of SV40 DNA Replication

Physical interactions of simian virus 40 (SV40) large tumor (T) antigen with cellular DNA polymerase α-primase (Pol/Prim) and replication protein A (RPA) appear to be responsible for multiple functional interactions among these proteins that are required for initiation of viral DNA replication at the origin, as well as during lagging-strand synthesis. In this study, we mapped an RPA binding site in T antigen (residues 164 to 249) that is embedded within the DNA binding domain of T antigen. Two monoclonal antibodies whose epitopes map within this region specifically interfered with RPA binding to T antigen but did not affect T-antigen binding to origin DNA or Pol/Prim, ATPase, or DNA helicase activity and had only a modest effect on origin DNA unwinding, suggesting that they could be used to test the functional importance of this RPA binding site in the initiation of viral DNA replication. To rule out a possible effect of these antibodies on origin DNA unwinding, we used a two-step initiation reaction in which an underwound template was first generated in the absence of primer synthesis. In the second step, primer synthesis was monitored with or without the antibodies. Alternatively, an underwound primed template was formed in the first step, and primer elongation was tested with or without antibodies in the second step. The results show that the antibodies specifically inhibited both primer synthesis and primer elongation, demonstrating that this RPA binding site in T antigen plays an essential role in both events.     

Simian Virus 40 t Antigen Affects the Sensitivity of Cellular DNA Synthesis to Theophylline

Cellular DNA synthesis induced by simian virus 40 mutants that lack t antigen is sensitive to concentrations of theophylline that do not affect wild-type-induced synthesis.     

Susceptibility of Human Cell Strains to Transformation by Simian Virus 40 and Simian Virus 40 Deoxyribonucleic Acid

Marked differences were found in the susceptibility of human fibroblasts to transformation by simian virus 40 (SV40). Highly susceptible cell strains were derived from patients with diseases associated with chromosomal abnormalities and a high incidence of tumors. In the present study, SV40 transformation-susceptible cell strains were not found to have a generalized increase in viral sensitivity. The differences in transformation frequency among cell strains with whole virus are eliminated by the use of isolated SV40 deoxyribonucleic acid, suggesting that the relative resistance of most cell strains to transformation by whole virus is due to a block at an early step in infection.     

Immunoperoxidase Localization of Herpes Zoster Virus and Simian Virus 40 in Cell Culture

The immunoperoxidase technique was used in an electron microscopy study to localize the virions of herpes zoster virus and simian virus 40 in cell cultures. Intranuclear and intracytoplasmic virions of herpes zoster virus were easily and specifically identified due to intense staining by the finely granular, black reaction product. With simian virus 40, intranuclear virions were not stained, whereas intracytoplasmic particles appeared densely black. There was essentially no background staining. Advantages of this technique over the ferritin-labeled antibody method include simpler preparative procedures for reagents, greater penetrability of the antibody conjugate, and internal amplification which substantially improves the ability to localize sites of antigen-antibody reaction. We believe that the immunoperoxidase method can be successfully applied to a wide variety of problems involving viral antigens.     

Review of prevalence of Simian Virus 40 (SV40) genomic infection in healthy subjects

Because of the carcinogenicity of SV40 in rodents, and its possible distribution through the polio vaccine, many studies have been conducted to determine if there is an association between SV40 genomic infection and different types of cancer; sometimes, these studies included data on the prevalence of genomic infection in healthy subjects as secondary information. We reviewed all the studies that reported the prevalence of SV40 genomic infection in healthy subjects, tested by PCR based methods. The 20 articles considered here included 1103 samples from healthy subjects, with a prevalence of infection ranging from 0 to 25.6%, with high heterogeneity, and no association with the type of sample analyzed (Mantel-Haenszel OR: 0.74; 95% CI: 0.44-1.23). The wide variation in frequency pose problems in terms of study design; in fact, the representativeness of the samples used as controls in the published studies may be very limited. Larger studies on healthy subjects, tested for SV40 genomic infection at various genomic regions, conducted in different geographic areas, are needed.     

Equilibrium Density Gradient Studies on Simian Virus 40-Yielding Variants of the Adenovirus Type 2-Simian Virus 40 Hybrid Population

The simian virus 40 (SV40)-yielding variants of the adenovirus type 2 (Ad.2)-SV40 hybrid (Ad.2(++)) population were studied by means of fixed-angle equilibrium density gradient centrifugation in cesium chloride. The hybrid virions of the Ad.2(++) high-efficiency yielder population banded at densities of 0.004 g/cm(3) lighter than the nonhybrid Ad.2 virions. The degree of separation of the hybrid particles was sufficient to permit greater than 100-fold relative purification by two cycles of centrifugation. Hybrid particles that produce adenovirus plaques in African green monkey kidney cells by two-hit kinetics (one-hit kinetics when assayed on lawns of nonhybrid adenovirus) were not separable from the particles that yield SV40 virus. The hybrid particle in the Ad.2(++) low-efficiency yielder population was not separable from the nonhybrid Ad.2 virions.     

Variants of Simian Virus 40-Transformed 3T3 Cells That Are Resistant to Concanavalin A

By treating populations of simian virus 40 (SV40)-transformed 3T3 cells with concanavalin A, variants have been isolated which are resistant to the killing action of the lectin. The variants (i) resemble 3T3 cells morphologically and in some of their growth characteristics; (ii) are not agglutinated by high concentrations of concanavalin A or wheat germ agglutinin, but can be rendered agglutinable by treatment with low concentrations of trypsin; (iii) bind the same number of concanavalin A molecules as 3T3 or SV3T3 cells; (iv) cannot be transformed by SV40 and are resistant to focus formation after infection with murine sarcoma virus; (v) contain SV40-specific T antigen and RNA and; (vi) yield wild-type SV40 virus after heterokaryon formation with BS-C-1 cells.