ISOLATION OF INOUE-MELNICK VIRUS FROM CEREBROSPINAL-FLUID OF PATIENTSWITH EPIDEMIC NEUROPATHY IN CUBA

Background.-A mysterious disease spread over Cuba from 1991 to 1993, t he cause of which has not been fully established. Major symptoms were the same in patients with the Cuban disease as in patients with subacu te myelo-optico-neuropathy (SMON), which had occurred in Japan nearly 30 years ago and from which Inoue-Melnick virus (IMV) type 1 was first isolated. We investigated the presence of IMV in cerebrospinal fluid samples of patients with this epidemic neuropathy in Cuba. Methods.-Th e established method for detecting IMV in MRC-5 fibroblasts was used t hroughout the study, which was conducted in two independent laboratori es, one in Buffalo, NY, and the other in Kyoto, japan. The cerebrospin al fluid samples of 20 patients and four controls were provided by Cub an researchers. Results.-All cerebrospinal fluid specimens from 20 Cub an patients tested were positive for IMV type 2 (100%), and four cereb rospinal fluid specimens from Cuban controls were negative for IMV (0% ). These clear-cut results were identical in both laboratories. Conclu sion.-Our study indicates an important association of IMV type 2 with patients of this Cuban epidemic. The etiologic role of IMV type 2 in t he epidemic neuropathy in Cuba, along with weak cytopathic effect viru ses isolated by the Cuban group, remains to be elucidated.