Flow microfluorometic analysis of cellular DNA content during early stages of transformation by type C oncorna virus

Flow microfluorometric (FMF) analysis of the quantity of cell DNA is performed on normal rat kidney (NRK) cells for six days following infection with Kirsten mouse sarcoma virus (KiMSV), a type C oncorna virus. Characterization of infection of cells by morphology, immunology, growth patterns, and chromosome number reveals that KiMSV infected cells exhibit properties associated with virus transformation. FMF analysis of daily samples of noninfected and KiMSV-infected NRK cells, stained by acriflavin-Feulgen technique, indicates no significant change in ENA content of freshly infected cells from that of noninfected cells. However, NRK cells infected with KiMSV for more than 100 passages show an elevated cellular DNA content. Significance of possible artifacts arising from procedural technique for FMF data are discussed.