Methylated simian virus 40-specific RNA from nuclei and cytoplasm of infected BSC-1 cells.

Host cell and virus-specific poly(A)-containing RNAs isolated from nuclei and cytoplasm of monkey kidney cells infected with simian virus 40 contain different methylated nucleotides. In the cytoplasmic simian virus 40-specific RNA, about 75% of the radioactivity derived from (methyl-3-H)methionine was in N-6-methyladenosine (N-6mA) after digestion with Penicillium nuclease and bacterial alkaline phosphatase. The remainder was in a negatively charge component with properties of 5'-terminal structures, i.e., digestion with nucleotide pyrophosphatase and bacterial alkaline phosphatase released 2'-O-methyladenosine (A-m), 2'-O-methylguanosine (G-m), and 7-methylguanosine (m-7-G), consistent with a 5'-terminal structure of the type, m7-GpppNm. The nuclear virus-specific RNA contained N6mA, GM, 2'-O-methyluridine (U-m), and a smaller proportion (10%) of nuclease-, phosphatase-resistant presumptive 5' termini that also yielded A-m, G-m, and m7-G upon further hydrolysis. The infected cell nuclear and cytoplasmic RNAs that did not hybridize to DNA of simian virus 40 contained all four 2'-O-methylnucleosides. The possible role of methylation in the processing and translation of simian virus 40-specific mRNA is discussed.