The aim of this study was to quantitate the number of cell membrane-located SV40 large tumor antigen (large T) molecules of SV40-transformed cell lines by cytofluorimetric analysis. Five different SV40-transformed cell lines were labelled by either a biotin-or a fluorescein-conjugated monoclonal antibody, PAb1605, which is specmc for the large T carboxyterminus. The conjugated-antibody fluorescence signals of the stained large T molecules of transformed cells were measured via cytofluorimetry. Comparison of the fluorescence signals of calibrated beads bearing a known number of fluorescein molecules to the signals of conjugated PAb1605 antibodies bound on microbeads to a detbed number of IgG binding sites made it possible to determine the number of antibody-accessible large T molecules per SV40-transformed cell. The numbers ( X lo-*) found per cell were 1.0 (ELONA, hamster), 3.0 (VLM, mouse), 3.5 (mKSA, mouse), 11 (C57SV, mouse), and 5.5 (SVSO, human), respectively. Thus, the technique described allows a precise quantitation of surfaceexposed, antibody-accessible viral antigen expresdoll. 0 1995 WileyLiss, Inc.