Presence of herpesvirus-associated antigens on the surfaces of transformed, tumor, and metastatic cells and enhanced antigenicity of transformed cells using 5-iodo-2'-deoxyuridine.

Using a direct immunofluorescence technique, herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1)-transformed cells and cell lines subsequently derived from tumors and metastases were examined for the presence of HSV-1-associated surface antigens. Fluorescein-labeled immunoglobulins derived from antisera were used and included anti-HSV-1 (from hamsters), sera from tumor-bearing hamsters, and antibodies prepared in rabbits against cell material shed early into the medium after infection of rabbit kidney cells with HSV-1. All immunoglobulins showed the greatest reactivity with cell lines derived from tumors and metastatic lesions. There appeared to be little or no reactivity on the surfaces of the transformed cells. Transformed cells treated with 5-iodo-2'-deoxyuridine for 48 h, however, showed an enhanced reactivity which approached that seen with the tumor-derived cell lines.