The effects of ultraviolet and ionizing radiation on herpesviruses, SV 40 and adenoviruses in relation to the small-plaque effect.

The small-plaque effect occurs with a wide range of herpesviruses following irradiation with ultraviolet light. The 37 per cent survival (D37) values, or dose required for one lethal hit (e), for herpes simplex, pseudorabies and pigeon herpesviruses in different cells indicate a broad spectrum of host-cell repair capacity. Other DNA-containing viruses such as SV40 and adenoviruses, which also replicate in the cell nucleus, show the small-plaque effect. Ionizing irradiation of herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) showed but little reduction in plaque-size. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]