Photoreactivation and ultraviolet-enhanced reactivation of ultraviolet-irradiated nuclear polyhedrosis virus by insect cells.

The nuclear polyhedrosis virus (Baculovirus) of Galleria mellonella (Pryalidae: Lepidoptera) was used to investigate the capability of cultured insect cells to repair ultraviolet (UV) induced damage in the viral genome. When assayed by the formation of plaques in the cell line TN-368, the survival of the virus was found to decrease linearly with increased ultraviolet exposure. The infectious capacity of UV-irradiated virions was significantly restored after exposing the TN-368 monolayers to either photoreactivation conditions (white fluorescent and black light) or to UV-enhanced reactivation conditions (far ultraviolet radiation). Using both types of repair sequentially resulted in higher reactivation than when either was used alone. These results indicate that pyrimidine dimers are the major factor responsible for inactivation of this virus by UV radiation but that other photolesions not repairable by photoreactivation partially account for the inactivation of the virus.