Isolation of a replication-defective murine leukaemia virus from cultured AKR leukaemia cells

Molecular determinants of the ratio of inert to infectious virus particles

The ratio of virus particles to infectious units is a classic measurement in virology and ranges widely from several million to below 10 for different viruses. Much evidence suggests a distinction be made between infectious and infecting particles or virions: out of many potentially infectious virions, few infect under regular experimental conditions, largely because of diffusion barriers. Still, some virions are inert from the start; others become defective through decay. And with increasing cell- and molecular-biological knowledge of each step in the replicative cycle for different viruses, it emerges that many processes entail considerable losses of potential viral infectivity. Furthermore, all-or-nothing assumptions about virion infectivity are flawed and should be replaced by descriptions that allow for spectra of infectious propensities. A more realistic understanding of the infectivity of individual virions has both practical and theoretical implications for virus neutralization, vaccine research, antiviral therapy, and the use of viral vectors.

Specific sequences of the env gene determine the host range of two XC-negative viruses of the Rauscher virus complex

Two viruses which do not give rise to XC plaques in the standard XC assay (XC-negative) have been isolated from the Rauscher virus (RV) complex. These viruses differ in their host range. One, R-MCF-1, is dualtropic and will therefore infect both murine and non-murine cells. However, unlike other mink cell focus-inducing (MCF) viruses, it cannot infect NIH 3T3 cells. The other, R-XC-, is ecotropic. It will infect murine cells, including NIH 3T3 cells, but does not infect mink lung cells. Analysis of hybrid viruses, in which homologous regions of the genomes of R-MCF-1 and R-XC- virus were exchanged, indicated that the NH2-terminal portion of the gp70 is responsible for the particular host ranges of these viruses. The nucleotide sequence of the env gene of R-XC- virus was therefore determined and compared with the known env sequences of ecotropic MLVs and dualtropic MCF viruses of the Rauscher and Friend virus complexes. R-XC- virus was found to be a recombinant virus. Its env gene contained sequences derived from an endogenous env gene which were closely related to those of the MCF viruses but differed from any previously described sequences. The particular properties of R-MCF-1 and R-XC- virus suggest that the two viruses arose by recombination between R-MLV and two endogenous env sequences which differ from those of the known MCF viruses. If so, this suggests that the mouse genome contains at least five env sequences which can give rise to MCF-like viruses. In addition, since the host range and interference properties of R-XC- virus are very similar to those of the previously described ecotropic recombinant viruses, it may be that the ecotropic recombinant viruses arose by recombination with the same endogenous env sequences as did R-XC- virus.

Murine leukemia virus mutant with a frameshift in the reverse transcriptase coding region: implications for pol gene structure

The molecular defect in the nonconditional B-tropic MuLV pol mutant, clone 23 (Gerwin et al., J. Virol. 31:741-751, 1979), has been characterized by recombinant DNA technology. The entire mutant genome was cloned from an EcoRI digest of integrated cellular DNA into bacteriophage lambda Charon 4A and then subcloned at the EcoRI site of pBR322. NIH-3T3 cells transfected with the plasmid clone, termed pRTM (RTM, reverse transcriptase mutant), reproduced the properties of clone 23 virus-infected cells. In vivo ligation experiments involving cotransfection of subclones of pRTM and wild-type murine leukemia virus localized the defect in the clone 23 genome to an approximately 400-base-pair region in the pol gene between the SalI and XhoI sites. Sequence analysis of this region in the wild-type and mutant genomes revealed that the mutant has one additional C residue located 231 bases downstream of the last base of the SalI recognition site. This 1-base insertion brings three TGA termination codons into phase. Thus, the mutation in clone 23 leads to premature termination of translation, explaining the presence in clone 23 virions of a truncated polymerase with low levels of enzymatic activity. It was previously shown that the gag precursor is cleaved normally in clone 23-infected cells; therefore, if a virus-coded protease is involved in this cleavage, it must be encoded by sequences upstream of the reverse transcriptase region of the pol gene. This consideration, coupled with the observed molecular weight of the mutant polymerase and our precise determination of its C terminus, have led to a proposal for the genetic organization of the murine leukemia virus pol gene.

New class of leukemogenic ecotropic recombinant murine leukemia virus isolated from radiation-induced thymomas of C57BL/6 mice

We previously reported the establishment of several lymphoid cell lines from X-ray-induced thymomas of C57BL/Ka mice, and all, except one, produce retroviruses (P. Sankar-Mistry and P. Jolicoeur, J. Virol.35:270-275, 1980). Biological characterization of five of these new primary radiation leukemia viruses (RadLVs) indicated that they had a B-tropic, fibrotropic, and ecotropic host range and were leukemogenic when reinjected into C57BL/Ka newborn mice. The leukemogenic potential of one isolate (G(6)T(2)) was further assessed and shown to be retained after prolonged passaging on fibroblasts in vitro. Restriction endonuclease analysis of the DNA of four of our new RadLV isolates (G(6)T(2), Ti-7, Ti-8, and Ti-9) revealed that G(6)T(2) and Ti-7 murine leukemia virus (MuLV) genomes had identical restriction maps, whereas Ti-8 and Ti-9 genomes were different from each other and from the G(6)T(2) and Ti-7 genomes. The physical maps of these genomes were similar to that of known ecotropic MuLV genomes (including the C57BL/Ka endogenous ecotropic MuLV) within their long terminal repeats, env, the right portion of pol, and the left portion of gag. However, a region covering the end of gag and the beginning of pol was different and showed several similarities with xenotropic MuLV genomes of BALB/c, AKR, and C58 mice previously mapped. Our results suggest that these primary RadLV genomes are recombinants between the parental ecotropic MuLV genome and a nonecotropic (xenotropic) sequence. This nonecotropic gag-pol region might be important in conferring the leukemogenic potential to these isolates. Therefore, these RadLVs appear to form a new class of leukemogenic recombinant MuLVs recovered from leukemic tissues of mice. They appear to be distinct from the recombinant AKR mink cell focus-inducing MuLVs which have a dual-tropic host range and harbor xenotropic env sequences. To further study the leukemogenic potential of these RadLVs, the genome of one of them (G(6)T(2)) was cloned in Charon 21A as an infectious molecule.

Naturally occurring leukemia viruses in H-2 congenic C57BL mice. III. Characterization of C-type viruses isolated from lymphomas induced by milk transmission of B-ecotropic virus

The prevalence of different host-range classes of murine leukemia virus (MuLV) was studied in C57BL mice with (V+) and without (V-) milk transmission of a naturally occurring B-tropic ecotropic MuLV. Virus isolates were studied with respect to growth properties, XC-plaque formation, antigen profiles of their envelope proteins (gp70 and P15(E)), gp70 tryptic-peptide maps, and their potential to induce lymphomas after inoculation into newborn mice. B-tropic ecotropic MuLV with the capacity to cause plaques in XC cells was isolated from almost all lymphomas of both V+ and V- sublines. The reaction patterns of these ecotropic isolates with monoclonal antibodies reactive with MuLV-env proteins and the tryptic-peptide maps of the gp70 molecule indicate that they are similar to each other and differ only slightly from the ecotropic MuLV in the spleens of young V+ animals, which is identical to the milk-transmitted virus. XC-, B-tropic dualtropic mink cell focus-inducing (MCF) viruses were isolated from the majority of different types of lymphoma (B cell, T cell, or neither B nor T cell derived), but not from the spleens or milk of young V+ or V- animals. The env proteins of the MCF isolates are highly heterogeneous, but most isolates originating from B10.AV + T-cell lymphomas share MCF-related epitopes in their gp85 envelope precursor with AKR MCF-247 virus. Most MCF viruses isolated from non-T lymphomas do not possess these epitopes. The results indicate that also in this model the generation of dualtropic MCF viruses might be important in lymphoma induction, although only some of the cloned MCF viruses show enhanced oncogenic properties in comparison with ecotropic isolates. A cloned oncogenic MCF virus induced different lymphoma types in C57BL/10 (= B10, H-2b) and B10.A (H-2a) mice, similar to what was found earlier with the milk-transmitted virus. Hence, the lymphoma-type differences are not due to differences in the B-tropic ecotropic viruses transmitted through the milk in these strains, but reflect an influence of the H-2 complex on the phenotype of the virus-induced lymphomas.

Molecular properties of a gag- pol- env+ murine leukemia virus from cultured AKR lymphoma cells

We have described the isolation of a replication-defective murine leukemia virus from a culture of AKR lymphoma cells [Rein et al., Nature (London) 282:753-754, 1979]. To facilitate the characterization of this murine leukemia virus, we transmitted it to mink cells and analyzed its genome by restriction mapping of the mink cellular DNA. This genome resembled the Akv genome quite closely, but it had an additional KpnI cleavage site at 1.3 kilobase pairs from the 5' end of the provirus and a small (approximately 50-base-pair) deletion between 1.8 and 3.0 kilobase pairs from the 5' end. When we tested these mink cells by immune precipitation or by competition radioimmunoassay, we found that they synthesized gPr82env, but contained no detectable gag or pol proteins. It seems likely that the KpnI cleavage site at 1.3 kilobase pairs reflects an abnormal sequence at or near the beginning of the gag gene, which prevents gag or pol translation by introducing a frameshift or termination codon into this region.

Replication-defective Friend murine leukemia virus particles containing uncleaved gag polyproteins and decreased levels of envelope glycoprotein

An erythroleukemia cell clone, 7C, which failed to produce reverse transcriptase-containing virions or infectious virus, was found to produce noninfectious virus particles by gradient banding of [3H]leucine- and [3H]uridine-labeled virions. The RNA from the 7C virus was shown to consist of the normal 70S size component, which converted to 35S upon heat denaturation. In contrast, the 7C virion proteins showed multiple defects. Analysis of the virion proteins by gel electrophoresis demonstrated that the pr65 gag precursor was incorporated into the 7C virus and that the processing of this precursor was severely diminished. Polymerase proteins pr180gag-pol and pr120pol were also detected in virions, and a third possible polymerase protein, p70, was reduced in size compared to its normal counterpart, p80. Incorporation of the viral gp70 glycoprotein into particles was also reduced 10-fold, despite synthesis and incorporation of gp70 into the 7C cell membrane in normal amounts. Pulse-chase analysis of the synthesis of the viral gag and env proteins in 7C cells showed greatly reduced amounts of pr180gag-pol, pr65gag, p80gag, and p42gag, whereas pr90env, gp70, and spleen focus-forming virus-specific gp55 were synthesized and processed normally. These results suggested that at least one defect in 7C virus was impaired cleavage of gag or pol proteins or both, most likely due to a lack of the appropriate viral protease, and that this lack of cleavage might affect incorporation of gp70 into virus particles.

Expression of leukemogenic recombinant viruses associated with a recessive gene in HRS/J mice

HRS/J inbred mice carry a mutant autosomal recessive gene (hr), which in homozygotes coincides with susceptibility to spontaneous thymic leukemia. Unlike their heterozygote (hr/+) littermates, hr/hr homozygotes express high levels of xenotropic virus during the preleukemic period, and viruses with a broadened host range (termed polytropic viruses) can be isolated from their preleukemic and leukemic tissues. Because hr/hr and hr/+ mice are otherwise genetically identical, the virological differences between them support the role of polytropic viruses in the generation of thymic leukemia. In the present report we show that the HRS/J polytropic viruses are env gene recombinants with unique oligonucleotide and peptide maps. These polytropic viruses appear to arise by recombination between ecotropic virus and an unidentified genome related, but not identical to, the endogenous xenotropic viruses. Moreover, polytropic viruses not only accelerate leukemogenesis in HRS/J mice, but also induce thymic leukemia in the low leukemia strain CBA/J. By contrast, cloned ecotropic and xenotropic viruses have no leukemogenic action.