Transfection of REP- mycoplasmas with viral single-stranded DNA.
Double-stranded DNA from mycoplasma virus L2 can transfect Acholeplasma laidlawii cells in the presence of polyethylene glycol (T. L. Sladek and J. Maniloff, J. Bacteriol. 155:734-741, 1983). We report here that both single-stranded DNA and double-stranded replicative form DNA, from the single-stranded DNA mycoplasma virus L51, are also infectious in this system. For both DNAs transfection frequencies were in the range of 10(-8) transfectants per DNA molecule and 10(-3) transfectants per CFU. An unexpected finding was that both DNAs could transfect A. laidlawii strain REP-, a variant which is a nonpermissive host for single-stranded DNA mycoplasma viruses due to a block in viral DNA replication (Nowak et al., J. Bacteriol. 127:832-836, 1976). The number of viruses produced by transfected REP- cells was comparable to the number produced by both transfected and infected wild-type cells. Therefore, transfected L51 DNAs are able to bypass the replication block in REP- cells that occurs when these cells are infected by L51 virions.
D000128:Acholeplasma laidlawii / Q000235:genetics*; D001435:Bacteriophages / Q000235:genetics*; D004277:DNA, Single-Stranded / Q000235:genetics* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D004279:DNA, Viral / Q000235:genetics* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D007700:Kinetics; D009174:Mycoplasma / Q000235:genetics*; D013045:Species Specificity; D014162:Transfection
D004277:DNA, Single-Stranded; D004279:DNA, Viral