The soft-tissue tumours induced in Syrian hamsters by herpes simplex virus type 1 and a chemical promoter.

Adult male Syrian hamsters were inoculated subcutaneously with herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1, 10(6) PFU) or ultraviolet-inactivated HSV-1. One week later 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol 13-acetate (TPA, 2 x 20 nmol weekly) was topically applied to the dorsal skin at the site of virus inoculation for 6 months. Control animals received HSV-1 only or topical treatment with TPA in acetone or acetone alone. Small tumour nodules developed in the HSV-1 group close to the site of virus inoculation 10-15 months after the beginning of the experiment. The neoplasms were classified as angiolipomas, chondromyxomas, a hibernoma, and an unclassified tumor resembling a Kaposi sarcoma in humans. The topical TPA treatment alone induced melanocytic hyperplasia and sebaceous gland hyperplasia. The soft-tissue tumours differed markedly from the structure of the soft-tissue sarcomas induced in Syrian hamsters by viruses of the papova and polyoma groups. Since the spontaneous incidence of benign soft-tissue tumours in our close hamster colony is extremely low, we concluded that mutagenic HSV-1 effects on hamster mesenchymal cell DNA may be involved in the process of formation of the observed benign neoplasms.