Antibodies against small nuclear ribonucleoproteins immunoprecipitate complexes containing ts110 Moloney murine sarcoma virus genomic and messenger RNAs.

Small nuclear ribonucleoproteins (snRNPs) are believed to play a role in processing premessenger RNAs. In this study, snRNPs were immunoprecipitated from extracts of cells infected with ts110 Moloney murine sarcoma virus (ts110 MoMuSV). Both the unspliced 4.0 kb and the spliced 3.5-kb ts110 MoMuSV specific RNA species were found in the immunoprecipitates obtained with monoclonal antibody anti-Sm and polyclonal anti-Sm, anti-(U1) RNP and anti-La sera. Although only a portion of the total ts110 RNAs was present in these immunoprecipitates, immune recognition by the anti-snRNPs was specific and not due to contaminating anti-RNA (at least for the anti-Sm sera) or, to anti-viral protein activities. Genomic 8.3-kb RNA and subgenomic 3.0-kb spliced env mRNA from Moloney murine leukemia virus (MoMuLV) infected cells as well as the cellular actin mRNA were also detected in immunoprecipitates obtained with the same antisera. The fact that pre-mRNAs and mature mRNAs of different origin can be recovered from immunoprecipitates formed with anti-snRNP sera establishes their tight association and confirms the role of snRNPs in mRNA processing.