Simian virus 40 (SV40) recombinants carrying the adenovirus type 12 ElA gene were constructed. The SV40 expression vector was constructed by removing most of the VP1 gene and an internal part of the intervening sequence for late 16S RNA and by joining the 5' and 3' splice sites into a small segment. The adenovirus type 12 ElA gene with or without its own promoter was inserted downstream from the SV40 late promoter and the splicing junctions. The recominant DNA was propagated and packaged in monkey cells by cotransfection with an early temperature-sensitive mutant (tsA58) DNA as helper. Immunofluorescent staining of the monkey cells infected with the resulting virus stocks showed that up to 20% of the cells overproduced the ElA gene products in the nuclei. Two-dimensional gel electrophoresis of the products indicated that the products were very similar or identical to the authentic polypeptides synthesized in adenovirus type 12infected human embryo kidney cells. The ElA mRNA was initiated at the SV40 late promoter irrespective of the presence of the EIA promoter and terminated at either the ElA or the SV40 polyadenylation signal. These hybrid mRNAs were correctly spliced in the ElA coding region. MATERIALS AND METHODS Cells and viruses. Established cell lines of African green monkey kidney, CV1 and GC7 (36), and KB cells were cultivated in Eagle medium with 10% calf or 408