Studies on the Replication of Polyoma DNA: Physicochemical Properties of Viral DNA Synthesized when Protein Synthesis is Inhibited

Abstract

Physicochemical, electron microscopic, and enzymatic studies have been carried out to analyze the structure of the polyoma DNA synthesized under conditions in which de novo protein synthesis is inhibited late during infection, and in which (as shown elsewhere) the maturation of progeny viral DNA to yield superhelical, fully covalently closed DNA is blocked. The evidence indicated that viral DNA molecules are accumulated which, upon deproteinization and extraction, give rise to the following: (i) form II Py DNA, double-stranded, circular with one single-strand break; (ii) circular dimers; (iii) form-II-like molecules, but carrying double-stranded, linear "tails".