Lysosomal acridine orange uptake in fibroblasts transformed by SV40 or human cytomegalovirus.

Abstract

Lysosomes of living human fibroblasts, SV40-transformed rat fibroblasts and human CMV-transformed hamster fibroblasts were examined by fluorescence microscopy after pretreatment with acridine orange at a supravital concentrations (5 x 10(6) M). Dye uptake by human primary fibroblast lysosomes was considerable and independent of the age of the cultures. In the transformed cultures, cytoplasmic granular red fluorescence indicating lysosomal acridine orange uptake could not be observed in part of the cells; cells showing no cytoplasmic granular fluorescence appeared as early as after 48 hr incubation and were growing in dependence on the age of the culture. Staining of living cells by acridine orange solutions at supravital concentration is a practicable method for the examination of functional changes of lysosomes.