A new cell line from the embryonic tissues of Culex tritaeniorhynchus and its susceptibility to certain flaviviruses.

A new cell line from the embryonic tissue of Culex tritaeniorhynchus mosquito was established. Morphological studies carried out at the 45th passage level (P-45) showed four different cell types viz. epithelial-like cells, fibroblast-like cells, giant cells and vacuolated cells. Karyological studies indicated diploid (2n = 6) chromosomes in majority of cells irrespective of passage level. A twelve-fold increase of cell number was observed in 10 days at P-49. The cells could be preserved in liquid nitrogen for more than 40 months. Isoenzyme profile analysis with four enzymes clearly indicated that this cell line was derived from C. tritaeniorhynchus. This cell line was susceptible to Japanese encephalitis (JEV) and West Nile viruses (WNV) but not to Dengue 1-4 (DEN 1-4) viruses. Protein of 38 K was detected in the membrane fraction of the cells from this and the C6/36 cell line, which was found to bind DEN 1-4 viruses. These data suggest that DEN viruses bind to this membrane protein and probably enter into the cells but do not continue further in the replication process.