Abstract
The sequence of events initiated by interferon and leading to the antiviral state were studied as possible sites for the cell-to-cell transfer of interferon induced viral resistance. The possible role of interferon produced by recipient cells was negated by the demonstration of transfer of resistance in the presence of anti-human interferon antibody and under conditions of a single cycle of VSV growth. Transfer of sensitivity of WISH cells to mouse interferon, possibly through transfer of a membrane receptor, seems unlikely since resistance was transferred in the absence of mouse interferon. From kinetic data and the fact that actinomycin D blocked resistance in human cells for 3 h longer than in mouse cells, it seems unlikely that the mouse antiviral protein itself or its mRNA alone is a likely candidate for the transfer of resistance. Thus, by a process of elimination, we suggest that secondary messenger molecules which transmit the interferon signal from the membrane to the nucleus are the effector substance(s) for the transfer process.