Biological Properties of Two Strains of Simian Virus 40 Isolated from Patients with Progressive Multifocal Leukoencephalopathy

Biological properties of two strains of simian virus 40 (SV40) from brains of two patients with progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML) have been compared to those of a standard laboratory strain of SV40. Infectivity of both SV40-PML viruses was resistant to treatment with chloroform, low pH, and 50 C for 120 min. African green monkey kidney and BSC-1 cells were the most sensitive for viral replication, and cytopathology in these cultures was indistinguishable from that caused by SV40. Both viruses formed plaques in these cells. but, in African green monkey kidney cells, strain 1 virus produced plaques measuring 2 mm in diameter whereas strain 2 virus produced pleomorphic plaques varying from 1 to 10 mm in diameter. Hamster cells were not permissive for viral replication, and infection resulted only in viral transformation. Inoculation of human fetal glial cells resulted in a permissive lytic infection of one cell type and a persistent infection with only partial expression of the viral genome in the other. No morphological evidence of transformation was evident in the latter cells. Both strains of SV40-PML viruses were neutralized by commercial anti-SV40 serum, but in reciprocal kinetic neutralization tests differences in K values were noted when each was compared to SV40. Both viruses showed oncogenicity for hamsters, producing undifferentiated sarcomas when injected subcutaneously and choroid plexus papillomas after intracerebral inoculation. All hamster tumor cells contained intranuclear immunofluorescent tumor antigen. This was indistinguishable from SV40 T antigen in reciprocal staining reactions using hamster anti-T antibody induced by the two SV40-PML agents and SV40. These two human agents appear therefore to be new variants of simian virus 40.