title: Diversity of murine norovirus strains isolated from asymptomatic mice of different genetic backgrounds within a single U.S. research institute.
abstract: Antibody prevalence studies in laboratory mice indicate that murine norovirus (MNV) infections are common, but the natural history of these viruses has not been fully established. This study examined the extent of genetic diversity of murine noroviruses isolated from healthy laboratory mice housed in multiple animal facilities within a single, large research institute- the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases of the National Institutes of Health (NIAID-NIH) in Bethesda, Maryland, U.S. Ten distinct murine norovirus strains were isolated from various tissues and feces of asymptomatic wild type sentinel mice as well as asymptomatic immunodeficient (RAG 2(-/-)) mice. The NIH MNV isolates showed little cytopathic effect in permissive RAW264.7 cells in early passages, but all isolates examined could be adapted to efficient growth in cell culture by serial passage. The viruses, although closely related in genome sequence, were distinguishable from each other according to facility location, likely due to the introduction of new viruses into each facility from separate sources or vendors at different times. Our study indicates that the murine noroviruses are widespread in these animal facilities, despite rigorous guidelines for animal care and maintenance.
authors: Laboratory of Infectious Diseases, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Department of Health and Human Services, Bethesda, Maryland, United States of America.
authors: Elyssa L
authors: EL
authors: Barron
authors: Stanislav V
authors: SV
authors: Sosnovtsev
authors: Karin
authors: K
authors: Bok
authors: Victor
authors: V
authors: Prikhodko
authors: Carlos
authors: C
authors: Sandoval-Jaime
authors: Crystal R
authors: CR
authors: Rhodes
authors: Kim
authors: K
authors: Hasenkrug
authors: Aaron B
authors: AB
authors: Carmody
authors: Jerrold M
authors: JM
authors: Ward
authors: Kathy
authors: K
authors: Perdue
authors: Kim Y
authors: KY
authors: Green
mesh_terms: D000047:Academies and Institutes; D000818:Animals; D002460:Cell Line; D005455:Fluorescent Antibody Technique; D051379:Mice; D029322:Norovirus / Q000145:classification* / Q000235:genetics* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D010802:Phylogeny; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D014481:United States