Homology Between Burkitt HerpFes Viral DNA and DNA in Continuous Lymphoblastoid Cells from Patients with Infectious Mononucleosis (DNA. DNA reassociation/Epstein-Barr virus/DNA/matching base pairs)

At least 90% of the sequences of puri- fied, in vitro labeled, DNA from Epstein-Barr virus (pre- pared from HR-1, Burkitt's lymphoblastoid cells) are homologous to the DNA of the herpes virus contained in cell lines derived from patients with infectious mono- nucleosis. The thermal stability of the homologous and heterologous hybrid DNA molecules could not be differ- entiated, indicating at least 97% matching of base pairs between DNA of Epstein-Barr virus and the herpes viral DNA contained in the lymphoblasts from patients with infectious mononucleosis. In 1964, a herpes virus, subsequently designated Epstein- Barr virus (EBV), was identified in continuous lymphoblas- toid cell cultures established from biopsy tissue obtained from