DETECTION OF HUMAN VIRUSES USING PRIMARY-CELLS IMMORTALIZED BY ONCOGENE TRANSFECTION, IN COMPARISON WITH PRIMARY-CELLS AND ESTABLISHED CELL-LINES

No single established cell fine was found capable of substituting for primary baboon kidney (PBK) or primary rhesus macacque kidney (PRK) ce lls for detection of human viruses. Although a panel of cell lines cou ld detect influenza, parainfluenza, and enteroviruses, which are among the most important viruses encountered in routine diagnostic laborato ries, the sensitivity of this panel was not as high as that of PBK or PRK cells. However, in a promising complementary approach, PBK and PRK cells have been immortalised successfully by oncogene transfection, a nd some of the resulting cell lines have retained susceptibility to hu man viruses, and may be suitable for routine diagnostic use. (C) 1996 Wiley-Liss, Inc.