INFECTION OF LEUKOCYTE CELL-CULTURES DERIVED FROM DIFFERENT SPECIES WITH PIG CIRCOVIRUS

Cultures of leucocyte cells were prepared from pig bone marrow, periph eral blood, lung washings, thymus and lymph nodes. Cell cultures were also prepared from peripheral blood from sheep, cattle and a human. Im munofluorescent (IF) staining of all these cultures, following inocula tion with pig circovirus (PCV), detected virus replication in all the cell cultures derived from pigs and in the cell cultures derived from cattle. Virus replication in pig leucocyte cell cultures was confirmed by demonstrating the production of infectious virus. Double immunosta ining of PCV infected cells using monoclonal antibodies specific for c ell membrane markers indicated infection was confined to monocyte/macr ophage cell types. No PCV antigen was detected in T or B cells in infe cted cell cultures.