Direct entry of rabies virus into the central nervous system without prior local replication.
Rabies virus pathogenesis was studied in a mouse model by inoculation of the masseter muscle. At different intervals, the masseter muscle, trigeminal ganglia, and brain were analyzed for virus-specific RNA with a polymerase chain reaction assay, which revealed that as early as 18 h postinfection (p.i.), virus-specific RNA was present in the trigeminal ganglia, and at 24 h p.i., viral RNA was identified in the brain stem. Analysis of the masseter muscle demonstrated virus at 1 h p.i. but no virus-specific RNA between 6 and 30 h p.i., indicating that virus invaded the nerve ending directly, without prior replication in the muscle. At 36 h p.i., viral RNA was detected again in the masseter muscle. Selective amplification of plus- and minus-strand RNA isolated from the masseter muscle at 96 h p.i. revealed that the majority of the rabies virus-specific RNA was in the positive sense, suggesting virus replication in muscle tissue during late stages of infection.
Shankar
V
V
Wistar Institute of Anatomy and Biology, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104-4268.
Dietzschold
B
B
Koprowski
H
H
D000818:Animals; D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal / Q000276:immunology; D001483:Base Sequence; D002490:Central Nervous System / Q000382:microbiology*; D005260:Female; D051379:Mice; D008813:Mice, Inbred ICR; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009132:Muscles / Q000382:microbiology; D009500:Neutralization Tests; D015345:Oligonucleotide Probes; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D012367:RNA, Viral / Q000032:analysis; D011818:Rabies / Q000382:microbiology*; D011820:Rabies virus / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology / Q000472:pathogenicity*; D014779:Virus Replication
D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal; D015345:Oligonucleotide Probes; D012367:RNA, Viral