Abstract
MANY human lymphoblastoid cells produce low levels of interferon spontaneously1–5 and this has been attributed to the presence of the Epstein—Barr virus (EBV) in such cells6–7. No clear relationship has been established, however, between the presence of EBV and spontaneous interferon production8. Since the latent EBV genome contained in human lymphoblastoid cells can be activated by treatment of these cells with halogenated pyrimidines9,10 or inhibitors of protein synthesis11 we determined the effect of 5-bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU) on interferon production in these cells in relation to the induction of EBV. Previous studies on the effect of halogenated pyrimidines on interferon production have yielded conflicting results ranging from no effect12–14 to inhibition15, or slight stimulation15,16. We report here that BrdU markedly increases both spontaneous and virus-induced interferon production in three human lymphoblastoid cell lines, without any apparent correlation with EBV induction.
Published Version
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