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Similarities between the mode of action of growth factors and the oncogene product (pp 60 src protein) of Rous Sarcoma virus have been described. However, a major difference is that addition of growth factors does not induce a malignant transformation of cells. The present work proposes a hypothesis concerning this difference. Various data suggest that density-dependent inhibition (DDI) of growth in non-transformed cells is due to the diffusion of growth inhibitory molecules. Inhibitory factors of 45 K (IDF 45) and 12 K have been fractionated. We assume that the stimulation of DNA synthesis induced by growth factor addition to dense quiescent cultures of non-transformed cells leads to an increase in the activity of autocrine inhibitory molecules in such a manner that the growth factor stimulatory effect is only transient, and cells re-enter the Go phase. On the contrary, the stimulation of DNA synthesis by v-src transformation would not be counterbalanced by inhibitory diffusing factors and cells would not enter Go phase. We present preliminary results which support this assumption. Dense quiescent cultures of chick embryo fibroblasts infected by Ny 68 virus (ts mutant for transformation of Rous Sarcoma virus) were stimulated to proliferate either by addition of growth factors in cultures maintained at 41 degrees C or by expression of transformation (by the cell transfer from 41 to 37 degrees C, the permissive temperature for expression of transformation). Stimulation of DNA synthesis by growth factors was totally inhibited by the inhibitory diffusing factors of 45 K (IDF45) whereas the stimulation of DNA synthesis produced by transformation was reproducibly not decreased by IDF45.