Deoxyribonucleotide pools in mouse-fibroblast cell lines with altered ribonucleotide reductase.

Mutant cells lines of 3T6 mouse fibroblasts, resistant to thymidine and deoxyadenosine, have an altered allosteric regulation of the enzyme ribonucleotide reductase (Meuth, M. and Green, H., Cell, 3, 367, 1974). Compared to 3T6, these lines contain larger pools of deoxynucleoside triphosphates, in particular deoxycytidine triphosphate, but show a normal rate of DNA synthesis. Addition of thymidine or deoxyadenosine to 3T6 cells results in large accumulations of the corresponding triphosphates and a dramatic decrease in the dCTP pool, concomitant with inhibition of DNA synthesis. Addition of thymidine to the mutant cell lines also leads to an increase in the dTTP pool but does not result in a depletion of dCTP or inhibition of DNA synthesis. Addition of deoxyadenosine only leads to a small increase of the dATP pool. In general the change in the allosteric regulation of bibonucleotide reductase is reflected in the deoxynucleotide pools.     

Cell cycle regulation of ribonucleoside diphosphate reductase activity in permeable mouse L cells and in extracts

Ribonucleoside diphosphate reductase (EC1.17.4.1) was previously characterized in exponentially growing mouse L cells selectively permeabilized to small molecules by treatment with dextran sulfate (Kucera and Paulus, 1982b). This characterization has now been extended to cells in specific phases of the cell cycle and in transition between cell cycle phases, with activity studied both in situ (permeabilized cells) and in cell extracts. Cells at various stages in the cell cycle were obtained by unit-gravity sedimentation employing a commercially available reorienting chamber device, by G1 arrest induced by isoleucine limitation, and by metaphase arrest induced by Colcemid. G1 cells from both cycling and noncycling populations had negligible levels of ribonucleotide reductase activity as measured by CDP reduction both in situ and in extracts. When G1 arrested cells were allowed to progress to S phase, ribonucleotide reductase activity increased in parallel with [3H]thymidine incorporation into DNA. Ribonucleotide reductase activity in extracts increased at a somewhat greater rate than in situ activity. S phase ribonucleotide reductase activity measured in situ resembled the previously characterized activity in exponentially growing cells with respect to an absolute dependence on ATP or its analogs as positive allosteric effector, sensitivity to the negative allosteric effector dATP, and low susceptibility to stimulation by NADPH, dithiothreitol, and FeCl3. Disruption of permeabilized cells caused reductase activity to become highly dependent on the presence of both dithiothreitol and FeCl3. As synchronized cultures progressed from S into G2/M phase, no significant change in ribonucleotide reductase activity was seen. On the other hand, when cells that had been arrested in metaphase by Colcemid were allowed to resume cell cycle traversal by removing the drug, in situ ribonucleotide reductase activity decreased by 75% within 2.5 h. This decrease seemed to be a late mitotic event, since it was not correlated with the percentage of cells entering G1 phase. The cause of a subsequent slight increase of in situ ribonucleotide reductase activity is not clear. Parallel measurements of ribonucleotide reductase activity in cell extracts indicated also an initial decline accompanied by increasing dependence on added dithiols and FeCl3, followed by complete activity loss. Our results suggest a cell cycle pattern of ribonucleotide reductase activity that involves negligible levels in G1 phase, a progressive increase of activity upon entry into S phase paralleling overall DNA synthesis, continued retention of significant ribonucleotide reductase activity well into the metaphase period of mitosis, and a very rapid decline in activity during the later phases of mitosis. The periods of increase and decrease of ribonucleotide reductase activity were accompanied by modulation of the properties of the enzyme as indicated by differential changes in enzyme activity measured in situ and in extracts.     

Selective suppression of growth factor-induced cell cycle gene expression by Na+/H+ antiport inhibitors.

Activation of Na+/H+ exchange activity is a ubiquitous response to growth factors and has been implicated in the mitogenic response. Little is known of how the antiport influences events in the nucleus which ultimately control the cell cycle. Using potent Na+/H+ exchange inhibitors we show for normal mouse bone marrow-derived macrophages that this activity is required for the colony-stimulating factor-1-induced gene expression of the M1 and M2 subunits of ribonucleotide reductase, an enzyme critical for DNA synthesis. Suppression of M1 and M2 mRNA levels occurred when the inhibitors were added up to 8 h after the growth factor, mirroring their ability to prevent entry into S phase at similar times. Antiport activity was not required for the induction of other genes associated with cell cycle progression including proliferating cell nuclear antigen and the G1 cyclin, CYL1. These results highlight the differential expression of various cell cycle-associated genes and demonstrates that non-coordinate regulation of CYL1 cyclin and DNA synthesis gene expression can occur. The selective dependence of ribonucleotide reductase subunit gene expression on Na+/H+ exchange activity may provide a biochemical basis for the requirement of persistent antiporter activity during G1 for subsequent entry into S phase.     

Isolation and initial characterization of a series of Chlamydia trachomatis isolates selected for hydroxyurea resistance by a stepwise procedure.

Chlamydiae are obligate intracellular bacteria that are dependent on eukaryotic host cells for ribonucleoside triphosphates but not deoxyribonucleotide triphosphates. Ribonucleotide reductase is the only enzyme known to catalyze the direct conversion of a ribonucleotide to a deoxyribonucleotide. Hydroxyurea inhibits ribonucleotide reductase by inactivating the tyrosine free radical present in the small subunit of the enzyme. In this report, we show that Chlamydia trachomatis growth is inhibited by hydroxyurea in both wild-type mouse L cells and hydroxyurea-resistant mouse L cells. Hydroxyurea was used as a selective agent in culture to isolate, by a stepwise procedure, a series of C. trachomatis isolates with increasing levels of resistance to the cytotoxic effects of the drug. One of the drug-resistant C. trachomatis isolates (L2HR-10.0) was studied in more detail. L2HR-10.0 retained its drug resistance phenotype even after passage in the absence of hydroxyurea for 10 growth cycles. In addition, L2HR-10.0 was cross resistant to guanazole, another inhibitor of ribonucleotide reductase. Results obtained from hydroxyurea inhibition studies using various host cell-parasite combinations indicated that inhibition of host cell and C. trachomatis DNA synthesis by hydroxyurea can occur but need not occur simultaneously. Crude extract prepared from highly purified C. trachomatis reticulate bodies was capable of reducing CDP to dCDP. The CDP reductase activity was not inhibited by monoclonal antibodies to the large and small subunits of mammalian ribonucleotide reductase, suggesting that the activity is chlamydia specific. The CDP reductase activity was inhibited by hydroxyurea. Crude extract prepared from drug-resistant L2HR-10.0 reticulate bodies contained an elevation in ribonucleotide reductase activity. In total, our results indicate that C. trachomatis obtains the precursors for DNA synthesis as ribonucleotides with subsequent conversion to deoxyribonucleotides catalyzed by a chlamydia-specific ribonucleotide reductase.     

Evidence for the involvement of substrate cycles in the regulation of deoxyribonucleoside triphosphate pools in 3T6 cells

Pool sizes of deoxyribonucleoside triphosphates (dNTPs) in cultured cells are tightly regulated by i.al., the allosteric control of ribonucleotide reductase. We now determine the in situ activity of this enzyme from the turnover of the deoxycytidine triphosphate (dCTP) pool in rapidly growing 3T6 mouse fibroblasts, as well as in cells whose DNA replication was inhibited by aphidicolin or amethopterin, by following under steady state conditions the path of isotope from [5-3H]cytidine into nucleotides, DNA, and deoxynucleosides excreted into the medium. In normal cells as much as 28% of the dCDP synthesized was excreted as deoxynucleoside (mostly deoxyuridine), leading to an accumulation of deoxyuridine in the medium. Inhibition with amethopterin slightly increased ribonucleotide reductase activity, while aphidicolin halved the activity of this enzyme (and thymidylate synthase). In both instances all dCDP synthesized was degraded and excreted as nucleosides. This continued synthesis and turnover in the absence of DNA synthesis is in contrast to the earlier found inhibition of dCTP (and dTTP) turnover when hydroxyurea, an inhibitor of ribonucleotide reductase, was used to block DNA synthesis. To explain our results, we propose that substrate cycles between deoxyribonucleosides and their monophosphates, involving the activities of kinases and phosphatases, participate in the regulation of pool sizes. Within the cycles, a block of the reductase activates net phosphorylation, while inhibition of DNA polymerase stimulates degradation.     

Amplification of the genes for both components of ribonucleotide reductase in hydroxyurea resistant mammalian cells

Ribonucleotide reductase catalyzes the formation of deoxyribonucleotides from ribonucleoside diphosphate precursors, and is a rate-limiting step in the synthesis of DNA. The enzyme consists of two dissimilar subunits usually called M1 and M2. The antitumor agent, hydroxyurea, is a specific inhibitor of DNA synthesis and acts by destroying the tyrosyl free radical of the M2 subunit of ribonucleotide reductase. Two highly drug resistant cell lines designated HR-15 and HR-30 were isolated by exposing a population of mouse L cells to increasing concentrations of hydroxyurea. HR-15 and HR-30 cells contained elevated levels of ribonucleotide reductase activity, and were 68 and 103 times, respectively, more resistant than wild type to the cytotoxic effects of hydroxyurea. Northern and Southern blot analysis indicated that the two drug resistant lines contained elevated levels of M2 mRNA and M2 gene copy numbers. Similar studies with M1 specific cDNA demonstrated that HR-15 and HR-30 cell lines also contained increased M1 message levels, and showed M1 gene amplification. Mutant cell lines altered in expression and copy numbers for both the M1 and M2 genes are useful for obtaining information relevant to the regulation of ribonucleotide reductase, and its role in DNA synthesis and cell proliferation.     

Induction of a new ribonucleotide reductase after infection of mouse L cells with pseudorabies virus.

The mammalian ribonucleotide reductase consists of two nonidentical subunits, protein M1 and M2. M1 binds nucleoside triphosphate allosteric effectors, whereas M2 contains a tyrosine free radical essential for activity. The activity of ribonucleotide reductase increased 10-fold in extracts of mouse L cells 6 h after infection with pseudorabies virus. The new activity was not influenced by antibodies against subunit M1 of calf thymus ribonucleotide reductase, whereas the reductase activity in uninfected cells was completely neutralized. Furthermore, packed infected cells (but not mock-infected cells) showed an electron paramagnetic resonance spectrum of the tyrosine free radical of subunit M2 of the cellular ribonucleotide reductase. These data given conclusive evidence that on infection, herpesvirus induces a new or modified ribonucleotide reductase. The virus-induced enzyme showed the same sensitivity to inhibition by hydroxyurea as the cellular reductase. The allosteric regulation of the virus enzyme was completely different from the regulation of the cellular reductase. Thus, CDP reduction catalyzed by the virus enzyme showed no requirement for ATP as a positive effector, and no feedback inhibition was observed by dTTP or dATP. The virus reductase did not even bind to a dATP-Sepharose column which bound the cellular enzyme with high affinity.     

Reversion of hydroxyurea resistance, decline in ribonucleotide reductase activity, and loss of M2 gene amplification

A key rate-limiting reaction in the synthesis of DNA is catalyzed by ribonucleotide reductase, the enzyme which reduces ribonucleotides to provide the deoxyribonucleotide precursors of DNA. The antitumor agent, hydroxyurea, is a specific inhibitor of this enzyme and has been used in the selection of drug resistant mammalian cell lines altered in ribonucleotide reductase activity. An unstable hydroxyurea resistant population of mammalian cells with elevated ribonucleotide reductase activity has been used to isolate three stable subclones with varying sensitivities to hydroxyurea cytotoxicity and levels of ribonucleotide reductase activities. These subclones have been analyzed at the molecular level with cDNA probes encoding the two nonidentical subunits of ribonucleotide reductase (M1 and M2). Although no significant differences in M1 mRNA levels or gene copy numbers were detected between the three cell lines, a strong correlation between cellular resistance, enzyme activity, M2 mRNA and M2 gene copies was observed. This is the first demonstration that reversion of hydroxyurea resistance is directly linked to a decrease in M2 mRNA levels and M2 gene copy number, and strongly supports the concept that M2 gene amplification is an important mechanism for achieving resistance to this antitumor agent through elevations in ribonucleotide reductase.     

Ribonucleotide reductase activity and deoxyribonucleoside triphosphate metabolism during the cell cycle of S49 wild-type and mutant mouse T-lymphoma cells

We investigated deoxyribonucleoside triphosphate metabolism in S49 mouse T-lymphoma cells synchronized in different phases of the cell cycle. S49 wild-type cultures enriched for G1 phase cells by exposure to dibutyryl cyclic AMP (Bt2cAMP) for 24 h had lower dCTP and dTTP pools but equivalent or increased pools of dATP and dGTP when compared with exponentially growing wild-type cells. Release from Bt2cAMP arrest resulted in a maximum enrichment of S phase occurring 24 h after removal of the Bt2cAMP, and was accompanied by an increase in dCTP and dTTP levels that persisted in colcemid-treated (G2/M phase enriched) cultures. Ribonucleotide reductase activity in permeabilized cells was low in G1 arrested cells, increased in S phase enriched cultures and further increased in G2/M enriched cultures. In cell lines heterozygous for mutations in the allosteric binding sites on the M1 subunit of ribonucleotide reductase, the deoxyribonucleotide pools in S phase enriched cultures were larger than in wild-type S49 cells, suggesting that feedback inhibition of ribonucleotide reductase is an important mechanism limiting the size of deoxyribonucleoside triphosphate pools. The M1 and M2 subunits of ribonucleotide reductase from wild-type S49 cells were identified on two-dimensional polyacrylamide gels, but showed no significant change in intensity during the cell cycle. These data are consistent with allosteric inhibition of ribonucleotide reductase during the G1 phase of the cycle and release of this inhibition during S phase. They suggest that the increase in ribonucleotide reductase activity observed in permeabilized S phase-enriched cultures may not be the result of increased synthesis of either the M1 or M2 subunit of the enzyme.     

Nucleotide and thioredoxin specificity of the manganese ribonucleotide reductase from Brevibacterium ammoniagenes

The manganese-containing ribonucleotide reductase previously identified in gram-positive bacteria has been purified and its nucleotide specificity and other requirements were determined. The enzyme isolated from Brevibacterium ammoniagenes is a ribonucleoside-diphosphate reductase which, in the presence of allosteric effectors, reduces all four common substrates at comparable rates; very little activity is observed in the absence of effector nucleotides. Ribonucleoside triphosphates are reduced at 20% the rate of the diphosphates. Cytidine and uridine nucleotide reduction is specifically stimulated by ATP and dATP, adenylate reduction by dGTP, and guanosine nucleotide reduction by dTTP. Unlike the iron-containing ribonucleotide reductase systems, high concentrations of dATP do not inhibit substrate reduction. The new bacterial enzyme tolerates high salt concentrations (up to 250 mM ionic strength) and does not require divalent metal ions for activity in vitro. The presence of thioredoxin has been demonstrated in heat- and acid-treated protein extracts of B. ammoniagenes and the protein was purified to homogeneity. It is very similar to the thioredoxins isolated from other organisms in relative molecular mass (12,000), isoelectric point (4.3) and enzyme-activating properties. In the presence of 0.3 mM dithiothreitol, the bacterial thioredoxin can serve as hydrogen donor for B. ammoniagenes ribonucleotide reductase in vitro, indicating the presence of a functional ribonucleotide reductase-thioredoxin system in these bacteria. The properties described in this and in our preceding paper in this journal [Eur. J. Biochem. 170, 603-611 (1988)] suggest that the B. ammoniagenes ribonucleotide reductase is intermediate in structure and specificity between the deoxyadenosylcobalamin-dependent and the iron-containing enzyme classes and that it is adapted to the specific requirements of deoxyribonucleotide synthesis in this organism.     

Correlation between levels of ferritin and the iron-containing component of ribonucleotide reductase in hydroxyurea-sensitive, -resistant, and -revertant cell lines.

The reduction of ribonucleotides to deoxyribonucleotides, a rate-limiting step in DNA synthesis, is catalyzed by ribonucleotide reductase. This enzyme is composed of two components, M1 and M2. Recent work has shown that inhibition of ribonucleotide reductase by the antitumor drug hydroxyurea leads to a destabilized iron centre in protein M2. We have examined the relationship between the levels of ferritin, the iron storage protein, and the iron-containing M2 component of ribonucleotide reductase. These studies were carried out with hydroxyurea-sensitive, -resistant, and -revertant cell lines. Hydroxyurea-resistant mouse L cells contained M2 gene amplification and elevated levels of enzyme activity, M2 message, and total cellular M2 protein concentration. Hydroxyurea-revertant cells exhibited a wild-type M2 gene copy number, and approximately wild-type levels of enzyme activity, M2 message, and M2 protein concentration. In addition, we observed that the hydroxyurea-resistant cells possessed elevated levels of L-chain ferritin message and total cellular H-chain ferritin protein when compared to wild-type cells. In contrast, the revertant cell population contained approximately wild-type levels of ferritin mRNA and protein. In keeping with these observations, obtained with mouse L cells, was the finding that hydroxyurea-resistant Chinese hamster ovary cells with increased ribonucleotide reductase activity exhibited elevated expression of both ferritin and M2 genes, which declined in drug-sensitive revertant hamster cell lines with decreased levels of ribonucleotide reductase activity.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Deoxyribonucleoside triphosphate metabolism and the mammalian cell cycle. Effects of hydroxyurea on mutant and wild-type mouse S49 T-lymphoma cells

DNA precursor synthesis can be blocked specifically by the drug hydroxyurea (HU) which has therefore been used for anticancer therapy. High concentrations of HU, however, affect other processes than DNA synthesis; nevertheless, most studies on the biological action of HU have been made with concentrations at least one order of magnitude higher than those needed for cell-growth inhibition. In this study we characterized the effects of low concentrations of HU (i.e. concentrations leading to 50% inhibition of cell growth in 72 h) on cell cycle kinetics and nucleotide pools in mouse S49 cells with various defined alterations in DNA precursor synthesis. The effect of 50 microM HU on deoxyribonucleoside triphosphate pools was a 2-3-fold decrease in the dATP and dGTP pools, with no change in the dCTP pool and a certain increase in the dTTP pool. Addition of deoxycytidine or thymidine led to a partial reversal of the growth inhibition and cell-cycle perturbation caused by HU, and was accompanied by an increased level of the deoxyribonucleoside triphosphates. Addition of purine deoxyribonucleoside gave no protection, indicating that salvage of these nucleosides could not supply precursors for DNA synthesis in T-lymphoma cells. We observed a higher sensitivity to HU of cells lacking purine nucleoside phosphorylase or with a ribonucleotide reductase with altered allosteric regulation. Cells lacking thymidine kinase or deoxycytidine kinase were just as sensitive as wild-type cells.     

Relationships between reversion of hydroxyurea resistance in hamster cells and the co-amplification of ribonucleotide reductase M2 component, ornithine decarboxylase and P5-8 genes

Hydroxyurea is a specific inhibitor of ribonucleotide reductase, which is a rate-limiting enzyme activity in DNA synthesis. Cells selected for resistance to hydroxyurea contain alterations in ribonucleotide reductase activity. An unstable hydroxyurea resistant population of hamster cells has been used to isolate a stable drug resistant cell line, and two stable revertant lines with different sensitivities to hydroxyurea cytotoxicity and different ribonucleotide reductase activity levels. We show for the first time that a decrease in hydroxyurea resistance is accompanied by a parallel decline in gene copies for the M2 component of ribonucleotide reductase, ornithine decarboxylase and a gene of unknown function called p5-8, indicating that the co-amplification of the three genes is associated with drug resistance, and supporting the concept that M2, ornithine decarboxylase and p5-8 are closely linked, and form part of a single amplicon in hamster cells.     

Enhancement by effectors and substrate nucleotides of R1-R2 interactions in Escherichia coli class Ia ribonucleotide reductase

Ribonucleotide reductases are a family of essential enzymes that catalyze the reduction of ribonucleotides to their corresponding deoxyribonucleotides and provide cells with precursors for DNA synthesis. The different classes of ribonucleotide reductase are distinguished based on quaternary structures and enzyme activation mechanisms, but the components harboring the active site region in each class are evolutionarily related. With a few exceptions, ribonucleotide reductases are allosterically regulated by nucleoside triphosphates (ATP and dNTPs). We have used the surface plasmon resonance technique to study how allosteric effects govern the strength of quaternary interactions in the class Ia ribonucleotide reductase from Escherichia coli, which like all class I enzymes has a tetrameric alpha(2) beta(2) structure. The component alpha(2)called R1 harbors the active site and two types of binding sites for allosteric effector nucleotides, whereas the beta(2) component called R2 harbors the tyrosyl radical necessary for catalysis. Our results show that only the known allosteric effector nucleotides, but not non-interacting nucleotides, promote a specific interaction between R1 and R2. Interestingly, the presence of substrate together with allosteric effector nucleotide strengthens the complex 2-3 times with a similar free energy change as the mutual allosteric effects of substrate and effector nucleotide binding to protein R1 in solution experiments. The dual allosteric effects of dATP as positive allosteric effector at low concentrations and as negative allosteric effector at high concentrations coincided with an almost 100-fold stronger R1-R2 interaction. Based on the experimental setup, we propose that the inhibition of enzyme activity in the E. coli class Ia enzyme occurs in a tight 1:1 complex of R1 and R2. Most intriguingly, we also discovered that thioredoxin, one of the physiological reductants of ribonucleotide reductases, enhances the R1-R2 interaction 4-fold.     

Involvement of ribonucleotide reductase in cellular differentiation

L₆ and L₈ rat myoblast cell lines have been selected for resistance to hydroxyurea, an antineoplastic agent whose intracellular target is the rate-limiting enzyme activity of DNA synthesis, ribonucleotide reductase. In contrast to the differentiation-competent parental lines from which they were selected, the drug-resistant lines exhibit a grossly altered or absent myogenic capacity. Independent selections have revealed a strong correlation between changes in ribonucleotide reductase, as determined by velocity levels and product pool analyses, and altered myogenic potential. These results provide the first indication that alterations in this key enzyme activity and its accompanying deoxyribonucleoside triphosphate pools can affect cellular differentiation.     

Regulation of ribonucleotide reductase activity in intact mammalian cells

An intact cell assay system based upon Tween-80 permeabilization was used to investigate the regulation of ribonucleotide reductase activity in Chinese hamster ovary cells. Models used to explain the regulation of the enzyme have been based upon work carried out with cell-free extracts, although there is concern that the properties of such a complex enzyme would be modified by extraction procedures. We have used the intact cell assay system to evaluate, within whole cells, the current model of ribonucleotide reductase regulation. While some of the results agree with the proposals of the model, others do not. Most significantly, it was found that ribonucleotide reductase within the intact cell could simultaneously bind the nucleoside triphosphate activators for both CDP and ADP reductions. According to the model based upon studies with cell-free preparations, the binding of one of these nucleotides should exclude the binding of others. Also, studies on intracellular enzyme activity in the presence of combinations of nucleotide effectors indicate that GTP and perhaps dCTP should be included in a model for ribonucleotide reductase regulation. For example, GTP has the unique ability to modify through activation both ADP and CDP reductions, and synergistic effects were obtained for the reduction of CDP by various combinations of ATP and dCTP. In general, studies with intact cells suggest that the in vivo regulation of ribonucleotide reductase is more complex than predicted from enzyme work with cell-free preparations. A possible mechanism for the in vivo regulation of ribonucleotide reductase, which combines observations of enzyme activity in intact cells and recent reports of independent substrate-binding subunits in mammalian cells is discussed.     

Deoxyribonucleotide metabolism in Herpes simplex virus infected HeLa cells.

The effect of Rolly No. 11 strain herpes simplex virus infection of HeLa cells in culture on deoxynucleotide metabolism and the level of various enzymes concerned with the biosynthesis of DNA has been investigated. Of 18 enzyme activities studied, thymidine kinase, DNA polymerase and deoxyribonuclease were markedly augmented, a finding in agreement with previous reports. Deoxycytidine kinase, ribonucleotide reductase, thymidylate kinase and deoxycytidylate deaminase activities, in contrast with previous reports, did not increase; the activities of the other enzymes studied, also did not increase. Whereas most of the radioactivity derived from [14-C] thymidine in the acid-soluble fraction of the uninfected cells was present as deoxythymidine triphosphate, that present in the infected cells was primarily in the form of deoxythymidine monophosphate. Thus, in the infected cell deoxythymidylate kinase is a rate-limiting enzyme in the biosynthesis of deoxythymidine triphosphate. A marked increase in the pools of the four naturally occurring deoxynucleoside triphosphates (dTTP, dCTP, dATP, dGTP) was found. The rate of formation of the virus-induced enzymes was determined, as were the various nucleoside triphosphate pools and the other phosphorylated derivatives of thymidine; a maximum was reached for all these csmponents between 6 to 8 h post infection. Although an apparent greater synthesis of DNA occurred in the uninefected cells, when the specific activity of the radioactive deoxythymidine triphosphate was taken into account, there was actually a greater rate of DNA synthesis in the infected cells, with the peak at 8 h post infection.