Transmission of human rotaviruses to gnotobiotic piglets

Faecal filtrates containing rotavirus particles, from children with acute infectious diarrhoea, were inoculated intranasally into gnotobiotic piglets. The piglets developed no symptoms, but birus was readily found by electron microscopy in their faeces during three serial passages. Among 11 piglets tested 3 weeks after inoculation of virus, all had developed fluorescent antibodies against tissue-culture-adapted calf rotavirus but only two had neutralising antibody. Growth of human rotavirus did not occur in either normal or "nude", thymus-deficient suckling mice.