Genetic studies with herpes simplex virus type 1. The isolation of temperature-sensitive mutants, their arrangement into complementation groups and recombination analysis leading to a linkage map.

Nine 5-bromodeoxyuridine-induced temperature-sensitive (ts) mutants were isolated from stocks of a syncytial plaque type mutant (syn) itself derived from the non-syncytial wild-type (syn +) of the GLASGOW strain i7 of herpes simplex virus type i. The nine ts mutants have been assigned to eight cistrons on the basis of different complementation tests. Non-syncytial revertants isolated from the original ts syn mutants were used in reciprocal three-factor crosses of the type: t sX syn x ts Y syn + and t sX syn + x ts Y syn. With recombination data from these crosses a linkage map has been constructed. The provisional map which locates nine cistrons is linear and spans about 25 recombination units. The regular occurrence of plaques with mixed syn/syn + morphology in the progeny from crosses is reported.