The p21 src genes of Harvey and Kirsten sarcoma viruses originate from divergent members of a family of normal vertebrate genes.

The Harvey and Kirsten strains of murine sarcoma virus encode enzymatically and serologically related p21 src proteins which are required for virally mediated cellular transformation. The genes in each virus encoding p21 show such extensive divergence from each other that cloned probes from these genes detect distinct sets of cellular genes in the DNA from several vertebrate species. These data suggest that cellular p21 sarc genes constitute a divergent family of vertebrate genes that can regulate the growth of cells.