Development of a new cell system for the infectivity assay of dengue viruses: plaque formation and virus growth of prototype and wild-type dengue virus strains in a newly established cell line, GK

A newly established cell line, GK, derived from the kidney tissue of Mongolian gerbils, produced plaques by infection of prototype and wild-type dengue virus strains. Both prototype and wild strains of type 2 virus grew in GK cells and formed plaques at 35.5 C and at 31 C, while types 1, 3, and 4 wild strains grew and formed plaques only at 31 C. In GK cells, plaque formation and the growth of dengue viruses depended on the high (35.5 C) and low (31 C) incubation temperatures. Virus yields in GK cells of all the 14 dengue virus strains tested, including four prototype and ten wild-type viruses, were 5 to 1,000-times lower than those in C6/36 cells. After five serial passages in GK cells, types 2, 3, and 4 prototype viruses and type 2 wild strain increased virus yields, and one strain of prototype virus and one strain of wild-type virus decreased mouse neurovirulence.     

Mouse-adapted sporadic human Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease prions propagate in cell culture

Cell based models used for the study of prion diseases have traditionally employed mouse-adapted strains of sheep scrapie prions. To date, attempts to generate human prion propagation in cell culture have been unsuccessful. Rabbit kidney epithelial cells (RK13) are permissive to infection with prions from a variety of species upon expression of cognate PrP transgenes. We explored RK13 cells expressing human PrP for their utility as a cell line capable of sustaining infection with human prions. RK13 cells processed exogenously expressed human PrP similarly to exogenously expressed mouse PrP but were not permissive to infection when exposed to sporadic Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease prions. Transmission of the same sporadic Creutzfeldt Jakob disease prions to wild-type mice generated a strain of mouse-adapted human prions, which efficiently propagated in RK13 cells expressing mouse PrP, demonstrating these cells are permissive to infection by mouse-adapted human prions. Our observations underscore the likelihood that, in contrast to prions derived from non-human mammals, additional unidentified cofactors or subcellular environment are critical for the generation of human prions.     

Proteins specified by the short unique region of the genome of pseudorabies virus play a role in the release of virions from certain cells.

Two pseudorabies virus vaccine strains (Bartha and Norden) that have a similar deletion in the short unique (Us) region of the genome have been identified previously (B. Lomniczi, M. L. Blankenship, and T. Ben-Porat, J. Virol. 49:970-979, 1984). These strains do not code for the glycoprotein gI, a glycoprotein that has been mapped on the wild type virus genome by T. C. Mettenleiter, N. Lukacs, and H. J. Rziha (J. Virol. 53:52-57, 1985) to the sequences deleted from the vaccine strain. Restoration of these deleted sequences to the Bartha strain genome restores to the virus the ability to specify the gI glycoprotein. The Bartha vaccine strain grows as well as wild-type virus in pig kidney and in rabbit kidney (RK) cells, but is not released efficiently from and forms small plaques in RK cells. The rescued Bartha 43/25a strain (which has an intact Us) is released considerably more efficiently than the Bartha vaccine strain, but less efficiently than wild-type virus from RK cells; it also forms larger plaques on RK cells than does the parental Bartha vaccine strain. The Norden vaccine strain, which has a deletion in the Us, is released better from RK cells than is the Bartha strain, but not as well as is wild-type virus. We conclude that whereas the sequences in the Us that are deleted from the Bartha and Norden strain genomes specify functions that play a role in the release of virions from some cell types, at least one other function (which is defective in the Bartha strain but not in the Norden strain) also affects release of virus from these cells. Since restoration to the Bartha strain of an intact Us restores to the virus both the ability to grow in chicken brains (B. Lomniczi, S. Watanabe, T. Ben-Porat, and A. S. Kaplan, J. Virol. 52:198-205, 1984) and to be released from RK cells, the possibility that the lack of virulence of the Bartha vaccine strain may be related to its limited release from some target cells is discussed.     

Molecular-biological characteristics of rubella virus strains isolated in St. Petersburg

In the surveillance of the incidence of rubella in the northwestern region of Russia, an analysis was conducted of swabs from the noses and pharynxes of 37 patients with rubella treated in Solovev District Military Clinical Hospital No. 442. To isolate the virus, the RK-13 cell line was used, in total 22 strains were allocated. The strains of the Rubella virus isolated in St. Petersburg during the 2007 outbreak belong to the 1E genotype. In the culture of RK-13 cells, changes of cellular morphogenesis and the formation of replicative complexes, as well as the shells of virions of rubella viruses, were detected.     

The properties of plaque-forming cells from autoimmune and normal strains of mice with specificity for autologous erythrocyte antigens.

Treatment of mouse erythrocytes with the proteolytic enzymes, bromelain, reveals antigenic determinants not normally exposed on the erythrocyte surface. It was found that not only NZB mice, a known autoimmune strain, but also several normal strains of mice contain cells in small numbers in their spleens and in larger numbers in their peritoneal cavities which will form plaques against bromelain-treated MRBC. During in vitro culture the number of anti-BR-MRBC PFC increases slightly in the spleen cell populations whereas the number of these PFC in peritoneal cells increases dramatically to as many as 100,000 PFC/10(6) cells. The plaques detected in this assay contain a central lymphoid cell and their development, which requires the presence of complement and protein synthesis, is inhibited by anti-mouse immunoglobulin.     

Comparative Studies on Large- and Small-Plaque-Forming Clones of Newcastle Disease Virus (Miyadera Strain)

The Miyadera strain of Newcastle disease virus (NDV) consisted predominantly of virus particles forming small plaques on monolayers of chick embryo fibroblasts (CEF), and contained small amounts of virus particles forming large plaques. These large- and small-plaque-forming clones of this virus (NDV-L and NDV-S) were isolated. The small size of the NDV-S plaques did not appear to be due to an agar inhibitor. NDV-L produced a much higher yield of infective virus particles in CEF and they were released more completely from the infected cells than were those produced by NDV-S. The yield of infective virus of NDV-L per cell from cultures of CEF was comparable to the yield from the allantoic cells. The infectivity/hemagglutinin ratio for NDV-L from CEF was as high as the ratio for virus from the allantoic cells, but the ratio for NDV-S from CEF was lower. NDV-S demonstrated an autointerference phenomenon in CEF when infected at high multiplicities, but NDV-L did not. Contrary to virus multiplication, NDV-S exhibited a more rapid and marked cytopathic effect on monolayers of CEF than NDV-L. In the allantoic cavity of eggs NDV-S produced slightly higher virus yields than NDV-L. No correlation existed between plaque size of the two viruses and the capacity to induce interferon synthesis or the susceptibility to the action of interferon. The properties of both distinctive plaque isolates were stable on egg passage.     

A focus assay method for Japanese encephalitis virus using complement and anti-virus serum

A sensitive, quantitative, short-time, and reproducible focus assay for Japanese encephalitis (JE) virus is described. After 2 or 3 days of incubation, the infected cells were treated with anti-JE virus serum and complement, and subsequently stained with trypan blue; then clear foci were produced. This method made it easy to titrate the infectivities not only of all seven JE virus strains tested but also of West Nile (WN), Murray Valley encephalitis (MVE), and St. Louis encephalitis (SLE) viruses using hyperimmune anti-JE virus serum for the latter. Moreover, even cell lines which hardly formed plaques by the agar overlay method easily produced foci within 2 or 3 days by this method.     

Sequential passages of human rotavirus in MA-104 cells

Starting with a small amount of diarrheal feces containing human rotavirus (HRV), we succeeded in propagation of the virus using the roller culture technique with MA-104 cells. Furthermore, we made a successful adaptation of HRV to a stationary culture and developed a plaque assay for the cell culture-adapted viruses. The 3 culture-adapted virus isolates, KU, YO, and 44 produced plaques (about 0.5-1.0 mm in diameter) under the overlay medium consisting of 0.6% purified agar, 3 micrograms of acetyl trypsin/ml and 50 micrograms of DEAE-dextran/ml. Subsequent plaque purification resulted in the formation of clear, larger plaques. It was shown from the results of cross neutralization tests using the fluorescent focus reduction method that the three culture-adapted HRV isolates were clearly different antigenically from ovine rotavirus (NCDV) and, further, that a noticeable difference in antigenicity also existed among the HRV isolates.     

Effect of Persistent Fibroma Virus Infection on Susceptibility of Cells to Other Viruses

Shope fibroma virus establishes a persistent cytoplasmic infection in primary (RK) and serially cultivated (DRK(3)) rabbit kidney cells which is accompanied by a morphological alteration of the cells. The response of such cells to superinfection by other viruses was compared with that of control cells by determining plaque production and virus yield of superinfecting viruses. It was found that the growth of other poxviruses, myxoma and vaccinia, was greatly inhibited in the fibroma virus-infected cells, but that of pseudorabies and herpes simplex viruses, which are unrelated deoxyribonucleic acid viruses, was virtually unaffected. The ribonucleic acid (RNA) viruses, poliovirus 1 and coxsackievirus B1, did not produce plaques on either RK or fibroma virus-infected (F-RK) monolayers. However, the growth of several other RNA viruses, vesicular stomatitis virus, encephalomyocarditis virus, Sindbis virus, and Newcastle disease virus, was enhanced in F-RK cells. None of these latter RNA viruses produced any infectious progeny in DRK(3) cells, but they all plaqued on and produced good yields in DRK(3) cells persistently infected with fibroma virus. This phenomenon is termed facilitation. Facilitation results from the infection of DRK(3) cells by fibroma virus. Neither interference nor facilitation were due to changes in the adsorption or eclipse of the superinfecting virus.     

Plaque Size Heterogeneity: a Genetic Trait of Lymphocytic Choriomeningitis Virus

All of the ten strains of lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus assayed on BHK 21/13S cells showed various degrees of plaque size heterogeneity. The amount of virus released from these plaques was usually very small because of rapid photodynamic inactivation by neutral red. When virus from large and small plaques of a specific strain was plated, the same distribution of plaque size was obtained from each clone. Although it was shown that surface virus could possibly be randomly distributed at the time of addition of neutral red overlays, no virus could be isolated from nonplaque areas. Two different strains of virus (CA1371 and WE) with markedly different plaque size ranges were separated by plaque excision from plates infected with a mixture of both viruses.     

Studies on the interaction between coxsackievirus A9 and HeLa cells. I. Plaque-forming ability of coxsackievirus A9 in HeLa cell cultures.

Most of the coxsackievirus A9 (CA 9 virus) including the prototype strain formed plaques in HeLa cell monolayers under agar overlay, although they showed little or no cytopathogenicity under fluid medium. These viruses were isolated or passaged in primary cynomolgus monkey kidney (MK) cell cultures, and the infectivity of any strain in terms of plaque-forming units was much higher in MK cells than in HeLa cells, even after plaque purification of the virus in HeLa cell cultures. CA 9 virus contained in the original throat swabs as well as some clones obtained by plaque purification in MK cells failed to form plaques in HeLa cells, but virus preparations obtained after several undiluted passages through MK cells included plaque-formers in HeLa cells, suggesting that such plaque (HeLa)-forming viruses may have developed at a certain rate during multiplication of the original non-plaque (HeLa)-forming virus population in MK cells. Out of four lines of HeLa cells examined, two, including a clonal line S3, failed to support plaque formation by CA 9 virus.     

Ectopic Expression of Vaccinia Virus E3 and K3 Cannot Rescue Ectromelia Virus Replication in Rabbit RK13 Cells

As a group, poxviruses have been shown to infect a wide variety of animal species. However, there is individual variability in the range of species able to be productively infected. In this study, we observed that ectromelia virus (ECTV) does not replicate efficiently in cultured rabbit RK13 cells. Conversely, vaccinia virus (VACV) replicates well in these cells. Upon infection of RK13 cells, the replication cycle of ECTV is abortive in nature, resulting in a greatly reduced ability to spread among cells in culture. We observed ample levels of early gene expression but reduced detection of virus factories and severely blunted production of enveloped virus at the cell surface. This work focused on two important host range genes, named E3L and K3L, in VACV. Both VACV and ECTV express a functional protein product from the E3L gene, but only VACV contains an intact K3L gene. To better understand the discrepancy in replication capacity of these viruses, we examined the ability of ECTV to replicate in wild-type RK13 cells compared to cells that constitutively express E3 and K3 from VACV. The role these proteins play in the ability of VACV to replicate in RK13 cells was also analyzed to determine their individual contribution to viral replication and PKR activation. Since E3L and K3L are two relevant host range genes, we hypothesized that expression of one or both of them may have a positive impact on the ability of ECTV to replicate in RK13 cells. Using various methods to assess virus growth, we did not detect any significant differences with respect to the replication of ECTV between wild-type RK13 compared to versions of this cell line that stably expressed VACV E3 alone or in combination with K3. Therefore, there remain unanswered questions related to the factors that limit the host range of ECTV.     

Enhanced contrast of bacteriophage plaques in Salmonella with ferric ammonium citrate and sodium thiosulfate (FACST) and tetrazolium red (TZR)

Visualization of bacteriophage plaques may be enhanced by addition of ferric ammonium citrate and sodium thiosulfate (FACST) or 2,3,5-triphenyltetrazolium chloride (tetrazolium red, TZR) to the soft agar layer of a traditional bacteriophage plaque assay. Background color from these reagents improved contrast between clear plaques and turbid host lawns in trypticase soy agar (TSA) plates. Enhancement by FACST is based on reaction with hydrogen sulfide gas (H2S) produced by some strains of bacteria and was tested here using H2S+ and H2S- strains of Salmonella enterica subsp. enterica with a bacteriophage (Podoviridae) isolated from swine lagoon effluent. Only the H2S+ strain produced dark brown-black color in FACST-amended agar. Both strains showed bright pinkish-red color in TZR-amended agar. Color intensity for both reagents decreased with decreasing concentrations of the reagents. Contrast in FACST-amended plates appeared greater than that with TZR, but diminished after 12 h, while contrast in TZR-amended plates remained constant. At the concentrations tested, neither reagent affected plaque counts in the H2S+ strain. The FACST should be useful in bacteriophage plaque assays with H2S+ strains of Salmonella and other H2S+ bacteria.     

Cell surface hydrophobicity and charge of Staphylococcus aureus and coagulase-negative staphylococci from bovine mastitis

The effects of seven growth media on cell surface hydrophobicity of a collection of Staphylococcus aureus and coagulase-negative staphylococci isolated from bovine mastitis were compared in the salt-aggregation test. Thirty-three per cent of Staph. aureus strains showed extremely high cell surface hydrophobicity (auto-aggregated) and 28% were moderately hydrophobic while 26% were hydrophilic after growth on horse blood agar at 37 degrees C for 18 h. There were great variations in the proportion and degree of the hydrophobicity depending on the medium used. Cultivations on/in capsule-inducing media caused a shift from a high to a low degree of hydrophobicity, although a microscopically detectable capsule or slime layer was seen in only one strain. This strain and encapsulated reference strains had a hydrophilic cell surface and migrated faster in free zone electrophoresis than cells of unencapsulated strains. Cells of strains grown on staphylococcus medium 110 agar migrated faster than those grown on horse blood agar regardless of their capsule production. Coagulase-negative staphylococci showed uniformly hydrophilic cell surface after cultivation on horse blood agar, but not when grown in tryptic soy broth or proteose peptone broth. It was concluded that most of the Staph. aureus strains from bovine mastitis under a variety of growth conditions in stationary phase culture constantly expressed hydrophobic cell surface.     

Cell surface hydrophobicity and charge of Staphylococcus aureus and coagulase-negative staphylococci from bovine mastitis

The effects of seven growth media on cell surface hydrophobicity of a collection of Staphylococcus aureus and coagulase-negative staphylococci isolated from bovine mastitis were compared in the salt-aggregation test. Thirty-three per cent of Staph. aureus strains showed extremely high cell surface hydrophobicity (auto-aggregated) and 28% were moderately hydrophobic while 26% were hydrophilic after growth on horse blood agar at 37°C for 18 h. There were great variations in the proportion and degree of the hydrophobicity depending on the medium used. Cultivations on/in capsule-inducing media caused a shift from a high to a low degree of hydrophobicity, although a microscopically detectable capsule or slime layer was seen in only one strain. This strain and encapsulated reference strains had a hydrophilic cell surface and migrated faster in free zone electrophoresis than cells of unencapsulated strains. Cells of strains grown on staphylococcus medium 110 agar migrated faster than those grown on horse blood agar regardless of their capsule production. Coagulase-negative staphylococci showed uniformly hydrophilic cell surface after cultivation on horse blood agar, but not when grown in tryptic soy broth or proteose peptone broth. It was concluded that most of the Staph. aureus strains from bovine mastitis under a variety of growth conditions in stationary phase culture constantly expressed hydrophobic cell surface.     

A single-amino-acid substitution in polyomavirus VP1 correlates with plaque size and hemagglutination behavior.

The plaque size and hemagglutination characteristics of five cloned wild-type strains of polyomavirus were determined. The strains fell into two groups, those with large or small plaques, each with distinctive hemagglutination behavior at different temperatures and pHs. The nucleotide sequence of VP1, the major capsid protein of the virus, was determined for each of the viral strains. The PTA (large-plaque) and RA (small-plaque) strains differed only at residue 92 of VP1, where there is a glutamic acid or glycine, respectively (R. Freund, A. Calderone, C. J. Dawe, and T. L. Benjamin, J. Virol. 65:335-341, 1991). The same amino acid difference in VP1 correlated with plaque size and hemagglutination properties of the other sequenced viruses. Mutagenesis converting amino acid 92 from glutamic acid to glycine converted the plaque size and hemagglutination behavior of the large-plaque PTA strain to that of a small-plaque strain. Furthermore, PTA and RA VP1 proteins produced in Escherichia coli behaved as their parental viruses did in hemagglutination assays. These results demonstrate that amino acid residue 92 of VP1 is involved in determining the plaque size and hemagglutination behavior of polyomavirus and strongly suggest that this region of the VP1 polypeptide interacts directly with cell receptors.     

Antifungal activity of Lactobacillus against Microsporum canis, Microsporum gypseum and Epidermophyton floccosum

A total of 220 lactic acid bacteria isolates were screened for antifungal activity using Aspergillus fumigatus and Aspergillus niger as the target strains. Four Lactobacillus strains exhibited strong inhibitory activity on agar surfaces. All four were also identified as having strong inhibitory activity against the human pathogenic fungi Microsporum canis, Microsporum gypseum and Epidermophyton floccosum. One of the four lactobacilli, namely Lb. reuteri ee1p exhibited the most inhibition against dermatophytes. Cell-free culture supernatants of Lb. reuteri ee1p and of the non-antifungal Lb. reuteri M13 were freeze-dried and used to access and compare antifungal activity in agar plate assays and microtiter plate assays. Addition of the Lb. reuteri ee1p freeze-dried cell-free supernatant powder into the agar medium at concentrations greater than 2% inhibited all fungal colony growth. Addition of the powder at 5% to liquid cultures caused complete inhibition of fungal growth on the basis of turbidity. Freeze-dried supernatant of the non-antifungal Lb. reuteri M13 at the same concentrations had a much lesser effect. As Lb. reuteri M13 is very similar to the antifungal strain ee1p in terms of growth rate and final pH in liquid culture, and as it has little antifungal activity, it is clear that other antifungal compounds must be specifically produced (or produced at higher levels) by the anti-dermatophyte strain Lb. reuteri ee1p. Reuterin was undetectable in all four antifungal strains. The cell free supernatant of Lb. reuteri ee1p was analyzed by LC-FTMS using an Accela LC coupled to an LTQ Orbitrap XL mass spectrometer. The high mass accuracy spectrum produced by compounds in the Lb. reuteri ee1p strain was compared with both a multianalyte chromatogram and individual spectra of standard anti-fungal compounds, which are known to be produced by lactic acid bacteria. Ten antifungal metabolites were detected.     

Cell expression of a four extra octarepeat mutated PrPC modifies cell structure and cell cycle regulation

RK13 cell lines generated to express bovine PrP(C) with a four extra octarepeat insertional mutation (Bo-10ORPrP(C)) show partially insoluble PrP(C) and lower rates of cell growth when compared to either the same cells expressing wild type Bo-6ORPrP(C) or the original RK13 cell line. The expression of Bo-10ORPrP(C) in cell cultures was also associated with changes in cell size and reorganization of the actin cytoskeleton. This last process was reversed by Clostridium difficile toxin-B, a specific inhibitor of small GTPase proteins. Further, in clones expressing Bo-10ORPrP(C), increased proportions of cells at cell cycle stage G2/M were observed. Proteasome inhibitors caused a further expansion of G2/M-stage cells that was more marked in cell lines expressing Bo-10ORPrP(C) than those expressing Bo-6ORPrP(C), while this effect was minimal or null in the original RK13 cell line. Hence, the presence of Bo-10ORPrP(C) in RK13 cells promotes cell cycle arrest at G2/M, and the effect is amplified by proteasome inhibition. These findings suggest a role for PrP(C) in cell morphology and cell cycle regulation, and open new avenues for understanding the mechanisms underlying PrP mutation-associated diseases.     

Evaluation of a Plaque Assay for the Maedi-Progressive Pneumonia-Visna Viruses

A simple and direct plaque assay for maedi virus, two strains of progressive pneumonia virus, and two strains of visna virus has been developed and evaluated. The technique allows the plaques formed by these viruses to be localized without disturbing the host-cell substrate of sheep choroid plexus cells or the gelled maintenance medium over the host-cell monolayer. Diethylaminoethyl-dextran supplementation of the medium used to overlay strain K796 visna virus-infected cultures decreases the time required for maximum plaque development from 12 to 10 days, enhances the contrast of the plaques, increases the titer of plaque-forming units, and permits a plaque size heterogeneity to be realized. Both large and small plaques occur in cultures infected with the visna viruses, one strain of progressive pneumonia virus, or maedi virus. In contrast, the plaques observed in cultures infected with the second strain of progressive pneumonia virus are relatively homogeneous in size.     

2003～2007年中国风疹病毒基因特征分析

本研究用Vero细胞或Vero/SLAM细胞从我国10个省(直辖市、自治区,下同)2003～2007年风疹暴发和散发病例的咽拭子标本中分离到57株风疹病毒,用RT-PCR方法扩增了57株风疹病毒E1基因1 107个核苷酸的片段,并对该PCR产物进行序列测定和分析.结果提示,在基于WHO基因定型靶序列739个核苷酸片段构建的基因亲缘关系树上,其中55株风疹病毒株属于1E基因型,相对于其他国家的1E基因型,形成一个独立分支;另外2株风疹病毒属于2B基因型.57株风疹病毒大部分核苷酸的突变为无义突变,氨基酸序列高度保守,除了2株风疹病毒在E1蛋白血凝抑制和中和位点区域第212位氨基酸由Thr变为Ser,其他病毒株均无重要抗原位点的改变;所有我国已分离到的1E基因型风疹病毒在E1蛋白第338位氨基酸共享突变位点(Leu338→Phe338),而其他基因型以及其他国家的1E基因型风疹病毒在该位点均未发生突变,提示该氨基酸(Phe338)可能是我国1E基因型风疹病毒所特有.2003～2007年在我国10个省均分离到1E基因型,而2B基因型只在2006年从四川省的越南输入病例中分离到,提示1E为绝对优势基因型,2B基因型为输入基因型.与1979～1984年和1999～2002年我国流行的风疹基因型不同,发生了基因型的更替,近年我国风疹的流行是由1E基因型为主的风疹野病毒的多个传播链引起.