Teleocidin, a tumour promoter, stimulates synthesis of primate retroviruses in persistently infected human cells.

: The naturally occurring tumour promoter teleocidin produces a pronounced but transient enhancement of the synthesis of extracellular viral particles in human cells chronically infected with simian retroviruses of type C (baboon endogenous virus, simian sarcoma virus) or type D (Mason-Pfizer monkey virus) or a human cell line-derived type D isolate (PMF virus), respectively. The retrovirus-stimulating activity of teleocidin is very similar to that previously described for the tumour-promoting phorbol ester TPA in the same cell systems.