Temperature-sensitive mutants of vesicular stomatitis virus: viral RNA synthesis in cells infected with mutants belonging to complementation group I.

The RNA polymerase in cells infected with three group I mutants of vesicular stomatitis virus has been examined. Mouse L cells were incubated at the permissive temperature (30 degrees C) for a few hours after infection to allow the development of secondary transcription. The temperature dependence of the secondary transcription system was determined from the incorporation of labelled uridine, in the presence of cycloheximide, at 30 and at 38 degrees C, the later temperature being non-permissive for viral replication. In cells infected with mutants W14, W28, and G11 at a low multiplicity (20 PFU/cells) secondary transcriptase activity was markedly temperature-sensitive after 3 and 5 h of infection at 30 degrees C. At a high multiplicity of infection (1000 PFU/cell) cells infected with W28 showed considerable RNA synthesis at 38 degrees C after 3 h at 30 degrees C. RNA synthesis was also observed in W28-infected cells in which protein synthesis was allowed to continue after the shift from 30 to 38 degrees C. In the latter two cases the RNA synthesized contained 12-18S species but little or no 30S mRNA.