Abstract
Rotaviruses are major etiologic agents of diarrhea in man and many animal species, but symptomatic infection occurs mainly in young individuals. The murine model of rotavirus infection was used to investigate whether lymphocyte-dependent mechanisms primarily determine age-related susceptibility to rotavirus infection. Mature, athymic, nude mice were infected per os with rotavirus, and their clinical course and antibody response were followed. Nude mice and normal controls were both very difficult to infect, even though the viral inoculum used was 104 greater than that required to infect newborn mice. Of those mice successfully infected with virus (3/7 nudes and 8/11 controls), none became symptomatic. The duration of virus excretion was similar in nude and normal mice, but nude animals did not mount an antibody response like normal controls. Additionally, newborn nude mice cleared rotavirus infection in a manner similar to age-matched controls. These studies suggest that lymphocyte response and antibody production are not necessary for adult mice to recover from rotavirus infection.
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Eiden, J., Yolken, R., Lederman, H. et al. 971 THE ROLE OF LYMPHOCYTES IN THE MURINE MODEL OF ROTAVIRUS GASTROENTERITIS. Pediatr Res 19, 272 (1985). https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-198504000-01001
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-198504000-01001