Open AccessNoninfectious virus-like particles produced by Moloney murine leukemia virus-based retrovirus packaging cells deficient in viral envelope become infectious in the presence of lipofection reagents
Author(s) -
Sanjai Sharma,
Fukashi Murai,
Atsushi Miyanohara,
Theodore Friedmann
Publication year - 1997
Publication title -
proceedings of the national academy of sciences of the united states of america
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 5.011
H-Index - 771
eISSN - 1091-6490
pISSN - 0027-8424
DOI - 10.1073/pnas.94.20.10803
Subject(s) - murine leukemia virus , provirus , retrovirus , virology , virus , biology , viral envelope , group specific antigen , reverse transcriptase , virus like particle , endogenous retrovirus , cell culture , oncovirus , rna , microbiology and biotechnology , gene , recombinant dna , biochemistry , genetics , genome
Retrovirus packaging cell lines expressing the Moloney murine leukemia virusgag andpol genes but lacking virus envelope genes produce virus-like particles constitutively, whether or not they express a transcript from an integrated retroviral provirus. In the absence of a proviral transcript, the assembled particles contain processedgag and reverse transcriptase, and particles made by cells expressing an integratedlacZ provirus also contain viral RNA. The virus-like particles from both cell types are enveloped and are secreted/budded into the extracellular space but are noninfectious. Their physicochemical properties are similar to those of mature retroviral particles. The noninfectiousgag pol RNA particles can readily be made infectious by the addition of lipofection reagents to produce preparations with titers of up to 105 colony-forming units per ml.