Isolation and characterisation of a defective measles virus from a subacute sclerosing panencephalitis patient

Fowlpox virus recombinant encoding the measles virus fusion protein: protection of mice against fatal measles encephalitis

A recombinant Fowlpox virus engineered to encode the measles virus fusion protein was shown to protect mice against a challenge measles infection. A vaccine dose of about 10(6) p.f.u. was needed to protect nearly 100% of the animals. Mice failed to develop a significant level of antibodies directed against measles virus suggesting that other components of the immune system may be involved.

Protection of mice from fatal measles encephalitis by vaccination with vaccinia virus recombinants encoding either the hemagglutinin or the fusion protein

Vaccinia virus recombinants encoding the hemagglutinin or fusion protein of measles virus have been constructed. Infection of cell cultures with the recombinants led to the synthesis of authentic measles proteins as judged by their electrophoretic mobility, recognition by antibodies, glycosylation, proteolytic cleavage, and presentation on the cell surface. Mice vaccinated with a single dose of the recombinant encoding the hemagglutinin protein developed antibodies capable of both inhibiting hemagglutination activity and neutralizing measles virus, whereas animals vaccinated with the recombinant encoding the fusion protein developed measles neutralizing antibodies. Mice vaccinated with either of the recombinants resisted a normally lethal intracerebral inoculation of a cell-associated measles virus subacute sclerosing panencephalitis strain.

Transient rescue of Sendai-6/94 cl virus from the persistently infected cell line Cl-E-8 by cocultivation

The cell line Cl-E-8 showing expression of Sendai-6/94 viral antigens after the original isolation was reexamined after approximately 160 subcultures. In the virus fraction of cell supernatants 6/94 virus particles (termed 6/94 cl) could be demonstrated; no infectivity, however, was monitored. We were also unable to activate the viral infectivity of 6/94 cl virus by trypsin treatment. The analysis of viral RNA revealed that the virus contains a high-molecular-weight (50 S) single-stranded RNA. After cocultivation of Cl-E-8 cells with several standard cell lines the production of an infectious 6/94 virus, termed 6/94 co, was detected. The infectivity titer in the supernatants was very low, about three orders of magnitude lower than in cultures infected with the egg-grown 6/94 virus (6/94 ST). Surprisingly, the production of infectious 6/94 cl virus invariably ceased several subcultures after cocultivation even in the presence of foreign cells. However, the infectivity could be repeatedly reinduced by adding fresh foreign cells.