Abstract
In this study, 82 DNA samples of simian virus 40 (SV40)-positive human tumors and normal tissues were transfected into SV40-permissive monkey cells. SV40 wild-type strain 776 was reactivated from two DNA samples, derived from peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) of a blood donor and from a vulvar tissue. SV40 reactivation was confirmed by obtaining rescue of SV40 from the DNA of the vulvar tissue in a second transfection experiment. This investigation indicates that infectious SV40 is present in normal human tissues and suggests that (i) PBMCs are probably vectors of SV40 to different tissues of the host and (ii) blood and sexual transmission may be routes of SV40 infection in humans, leading to (iii) virus spread in the human population.
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This study was supported, in part, by grants from Associazione Italiana per la Ricerca sul Cancro, (AIRC) (to G.B.-B. and M.T.), from Ministero dell'Istruzione, Università e Ricerca, Cofin and local projects (to G.B.-B. and M.T.), and from Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Target Project “Biotechnology 2” (to M.T.). L.L. and F.M. were fellows of the Fondazione Italiana per la Ricerca sul Cancro (FIRC) and L.I. was a fellow of the Fondazione Cassa di Risparmio di Cento.