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A comparative study was carried out to investigate the correlation between the antiviral effect induced in macrophages by IFN gamma and the resistance of A/J and BALB/c mice to an experimental infection of MHV 3, MHV 4, and MHVA 59. Both mouse strains were resistant to intraperitoneal infection with MHV 4 or MHVA 59 and only the A/J mice showed resistance to MHV3, the BALB/c mice being fully susceptible to this virus infection. Comparable growth kinetics, for all three viruses, were observed in both mouse strains, except for the MHV3 growth in BALB/c mice, where the virus titre increased to a peak on day 2, remaining high until day 4 when the mice died of acute hepatitis. The IFN gamma titres in the peritoneum of mice preceded and correlated with the virus growth, higher titres being found in MHV 3 infected BALB/c mice. The highest titre was always observed 24 to 48 h after infection. Among viral strains grown in cultured macrophages, higher titres were always observed in cultures infected with MHVA 59, followed by MHV 3 and the lowest those infected with MHV 4. The macrophage activation by IFN gamma-induced a partial restriction of virus growth only in MHV 3 infected A/J mouse macrophages. A virus specificity of the IFN gamma-induced antiviral state was shown to be in direct correlation with the resistance of mice to MHV 3 infection.

We have activated a thymus-derived fibroblast cell line from 129/J mice for production of noninfectious type C viral particles. Retroviral particles were produced continuously after cells were treated with ethylnitrosourea, a powerful mutagen and carcinogen. Antigenic analysis of the major structural protein of these particles showed a close relationship with an infectious virus from Mus caroli, a potential progenitor of the horizontally transmitted primate type C viruses. This finding demonstrates the potential of cells from inbred strains of Mus musculus to express upon mutagenesis antigens of the Mus caroli class of endogenous MuLV.

The in vitro cytopathology and the neurovirulence to inbred mice demonstrated by five variants originally derived from one laboratory strain (Miyama) of type 1 herpes simplex virus (HSV-1) were studied comparatively. Three of the variants are syncytial [+GC (LPV), +GC (SPV), +GC (81)] and two are non-syncytial [-GCr and -GCf]. The size of plaques produced by the five variants was found to be in the order of +GC (LPV) greater than +GC (81) greater than +GC (SPV) greater than -GCf greater than -GCr. The pathogenicity of these variants was compared in three kinds of inbred mice (AKR, C 3 H/He and C 57 BL) after intraperitoneal (IP) or intracerebral (IC) inoculation. The +GC (LPV) variant was the most virulent as shown by the highest mortality of mice by either route of inoculation. The other four variants caused death of mice only after IC inoculation, and among these variants, +GC (81) was shown to be the most virulent. These data indicate that so far as these five variants of the Miyama strain of HSV-1 are concerned, neurovirulence is positively correlated with their cell fusion activity or the size of plaques which they produce. Pre-IP-inoculation with any of the less virulent variants [-GCr, +GC (SPV) and +GC (81)] protected mice from subsequent lethal infection with +GC (LPV) by the same route of inoculation.

Retroviral endogenous sequences related to the envelope (env) gene of Friend spleen focus forming virus (SFFV) and of mink cell focus forming viruses (MCF) are present in the genome of various mouse strains. We have examined the transcription of these SFFV/MCF-related sequences in normal tissues of two mouse strains, ICFW and DBA/2. Cytoplasmic Poly A+ RNAs of normal mouse tissues were analyzed by dot-blot and Northern blot hybridizations with a subcloned env SFFV DNA fragment (0.4 kbp BamH I-Sma I). In both mice, the level of SFFV/MCF env related transcripts was very low in bone marrows and spleens whereas it was high in kidneys. Intermediate levels of transcripts were observed in other tissues (thymus, liver and brain). In both mouse strains, the size of SFFV/MCF env related transcripts varied from one tissue to another. Some transcripts in DBA/2 mice were reminiscent of full-size viral message indicating an occasional expression of xenotropic/MCF endogenous virus in this low-leukemic strain. Sizes of the other SFFV/MCF related env transcripts were unusual, but were similar in both strains for each tissue studied. This last result suggests a tissue-specific transcription of endogenous sequences related to the SFFV/MCF env gene. A 1.8 kb SFFV/MCF env RNA was the major transcript in the tissues which expressed a high level of these env transcripts. Treatment of mice with phenylhydrazine which greatly stimulates erythroid differentiation in spleens increased the level of SFFV/MCF related env RNAs only in the spleens, suggesting a possible correlation between the SFFV/MCF env transcription and the stimulation of the erythroid spleen cells.

SJL/J mice showed a higher elevation of serum lactic dehydrogenase after lactic dehydrogenase virus (LDV) infection, and a higher per cent of Ia positive and LDV infectable cultured macrophages, than several other mouse strains. Genetic studies suggested that these unique characteristics in SJL/J mice are closely linked and inherited as a single autosomal recessive trait, which is not within the H-2 gene complex.