Fucosylglycolipids in cells transformed by a temperature-sensitive mutant of murine sarcoma virus

Abstract

WE have reported that fucosylglycolipid metabolism is markedly altered in cells transformed by oncornavirus¹. Transformed cells exhibit a sharp decrease in radioactive fucose incorporation into a chromatographically less mobile fucosylglycolipid, with a corresponding increase in radioactivity in chromatographically more mobile fucosylglycolipids. We describe here further studies of fucosylglycolipid metabolism using normal rat kidney (NRK) cells transformed by a cold-sensitive mutant of murine sarcoma virus (MSV)². The cell line, designated NRK (MSV-1b), is cold sensitive for maintenance of the transformed phenotype. The cells express the transformed phenotype at the permissive temperature (39° C) but appear phenotypically normal at the non-permissive temperature (33° C). Cells transformed by this mutant are non-producer cells, but contain the MSV genome in a rescuable form. Using these cold-sensitive transformants, we were able to demonstrate, in a temporal fashion, a relationship between altered fucosylglycolipid metabolism and the development of the transformed phenotype.