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. 1994 May 1;179(5):1713–1717. doi: 10.1084/jem.179.5.1713

Antibodies are not essential for the resolution of primary cytomegalovirus infection but limit dissemination of recurrent virus

PMCID: PMC2191473  PMID: 8163949

Abstract

Virus shedding from the epithelial cells of the serous acini of salivary glands is a major source for the horizontal transmission of cytomegalovirus. These cells are, different to other tissues, exempt from CD8 T lymphocyte control. CD4 T lymphocytes are essential to terminate the productive infection. Here, we prove that T-B cooperation and the production of antibodies are not required for this process. For the infection with murine cytomegalovirus, mutant mice were used which do not produce antibodies because of a disrupted membrane exon of the immunoglobulin mu chain gene. Also, in these mice the virus clearance from salivary glands is a function of CD4 T lymphocytes. However, these mice clear the virus and establish viral latency with a kinetics that is distinguishable from normal mice. Reactivation from virus latency is the only stage at which the absence of antibodies alters the phenotype of infection. In immunoglobulin-deficient mice, virus recurrence results in higher virus titers. The adoptive serum transfer proved that antibody is the limited factor that prevents virus dissemination in the immunodeficient host.

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Selected References

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

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