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The Journal of Experimental Medicine logoLink to The Journal of Experimental Medicine
. 1945 Oct 31;82(5):317–328. doi: 10.1084/jem.82.5.317

STUDIES ON THE ETIOLOGY OF PRIMARY ATYPICAL PNEUMONIA

II. PROPERTIES OF THE VIRUS ISOLATED AND PROPAGATED IN CHICK EMBRYOS

Monroe D Eaton 1, Gordon Meiklejohn 1, William van Herick 1, Marilla Corey 1
PMCID: PMC2135562  PMID: 19871503

Abstract

Experiments to determine the optimum conditions for propagation of the virus of atypical pneumonia in chick embryos are described. Variations in the activity of infected chick embryo material were investigated. The highest dilution of chick embryo suspension producing pulmonary lesions in hamsters and cotton rats is not over 10–3. Dilutions of 10–4 infect chick embryos. The virus is unstable at room temperature and also loses activity when stored in a dry-ice refrigerator unless the suspensions are kept in sealed glass tubes. Filtration experiments indicate a maximum particle size of 180 to 250 mµ. The virus propagated in chick embryos produces pulmonary lesions in hamsters and cotton rats which have been immunized to their own non-bacterial agents inducing pulmonary lesions. Of these, the pneumonia virus of hamsters most frequently causes intercurrent respiratory infections, and methods of controlling epizootics due to this agent are described.

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Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Eaton M. D., Meiklejohn G., van Herick W. STUDIES ON THE ETIOLOGY OF PRIMARY ATYPICAL PNEUMONIA : A FILTERABLE AGENT TRANSMISSIBLE TO COTTON RATS, HAMSTERS, AND CHICK EMBRYOS. J Exp Med. 1944 Jun 1;79(6):649–668. doi: 10.1084/jem.79.6.649. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
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