Identification of permissive and nonpermissive murine cells for polyoma virus

The interaction of polyoma virus with primary cell cultures derived from mouse heart, brain, and kidney was characterized to identify the organ(s) best suited for isolation of permissive and nonpermissive cells within a species. The outcome of infection was determined by measurement of the extent of cellular destruction, virus amplification, and viral gene expression. While the majority of cells in the kidney cultures were permissive, the heart cell cultures contained a significant population of nonpermissive cells.