Differential NK cell and macrophage killing of hamster cells infected with nononcogenic or oncogenic adenovirus.

Hamster cells infected with highly oncogenic human adenovirus type 12 (Ad12) were resistant to lysis by natural killer cells and macrophages, compared to cells infected with nononcogenic adenovirus type 2 (Ad2). The data suggest that early adenovirus gene expression in hamster cells results in preferential survival of Ad12, compared to Ad2, infected cells in vivo, thus providing an explanation for the differences in the oncogenicities of these two transforming viruses.