fixed 30 to 40 hours later in methanol and processed for detection of vp22 initial results demonstrated that in the majority of vp22 containing cells the protein was present in a distinctive nuclear pattern frequently showing enrichment around the nuclear rim fig1 a illustrates typical examples of the nuclear patterns of vp22 however in a number of cells vp22 was present in a very different cytoplasmic filamentous pattern fig1 b in this case the protein was detected in a meshwork or cage like pattern within the cytoplasm and was excluded from the nucleus this heterogeneity in distribution although not by itself unusual was not observed with the other hsv tegument protein under study vp16 which exhibited a pattern differing little from cell to cell and consisted mainly of a diffuse cytoplasmic pattern with minor amounts present in the nuclei further examination revealed that the cytoplasmic versus nuclear distribution of vp22 was not random with respect to each other ie one in which a central cell containing cytoplasmic vp22 was surrounded by a halo of cells containing nuclear vp22 where the protein was clearly enriched in the region of these latter cells adjacent to the central cell containing the cytoplasmic vp22 fig1 c finally the areas of the monolayer in which vp22 could be detected in every cell again displayed this distribution with.