Synthesis and transport of protein components of Sendai virus

Summary A method for labeling antibodies with p-aminophenylmercurylacetate (pAPMA) was applied to the study of the synthesis and transport of the S-antigen of Sendai virus in cells in tissue cultures. It was shown that synthesis of S-antigen begins in nucleoli 3–4 hours after infection and as it accumulates it is transported through the nucleus into the cytoplasm. Mature virus particles appear at the edge of the cell wall in 9–12 hours after infection. The evidence given indicates that the inner component of Sendai virus (ribonucleoprotein) is formed in the nucleolus. Some peculiarities of messenger RNA of Sendai virus are discussed.