No evidence for particles encapsulating RNA-instructed DNA polymerase and high molecular weight virus-related RNA in herpesvirus induced tumours of non-human primates.

The simultaneous detection test gave no evidence for the presence of RNA tumour viruses in herpesvirus induced malignant lymphomas of non-human primates. The 12 tumours tested were obtained from three different monkey species inoculated with Herpesvirus saimiri or herpesvirus ateles. Particles encapsulating RNA-instructed DNA polymerase and high mol. wt. virus-related RNA were easily demonstrated in tumours of the mouse induced by type-C or type-B oncornaviruses and in human lymphoid cells infected with simian sarcoma virus type I which were examined in parallel. Attempts to demonstrate partial expression of an oncornavirus genome in the herpesvirus induced tumours and attempts to detect an interspecies antigen related to monkey oncornaviruses were negative and strengthened the observations made with the simultaneous detection test.