Carrier cultures of simian foamy virus

The production of cultures of HEp-2 and BHK-21 cells persistently infected with a type 1 simian foamy virus is described. After infection, HEp-2 cells showed no structural changes, whereas BHK-21 cells lost their normal spindle shape and showed mitochondrial damage, and some cells contained many lysosomes. Thin sections also showed that a few BHK-21 cells contained virus particles in low concentration, and infectious virus could be isolated from both the cells and the supernatant fluid. No virus was seen in thin sections of HEp-2 cells, although infectious virus in low titer could be recovered intermittently from lysed cells. Both carrier cultures were immune to challenge with homologous virus and antigen could be detected in over 90% of the cells even after growth for 9 weeks in the presence of virus-neutralizing serum. The distribution of antigen in carrier cultures of both cell types is described and compared with that seen in cytocidal infections.