[Quantitative determination of the infectivity of nuclear polyhedrosis virus DNA on honeycomb moth (Galleria mellonella) larvae].

The possibility of using honeycomb moth larvae for titration of nuclear polyhedrosis virus (NPV) infectious DNA and determinations of transfection effectiveness was studied. Honeycomb moth larvae were shown to be a sensitive system for NPV DNA titration. DEAE-dextran used as a protector increased NPV DNA infectivity 1000-fold, LD50 in this instance being 2 X 10(8) molecules per larva. The method of NPV DNA infectivity determinations by the number of larvae with polyhedreae in the fatty tissue is more sensitive than infectivity determinations by the number of dead larvae and permits titrations of low DNA concentrations. The curve of DNA titration in the presence of DEAE-dextran by the number of larvae with polyhedrae in the fatty tissue allows to quantitate native DNA within the range of 0.01 to 5 micrograms/ml.