A comparison of the antigens present on the surface of virus released artificially from chick cells infected with vaccinia virus, and cowpox virus and its white pock mutant

Abstract

SUMMARYAntisera prepared against vaccinia and cowpox viruses were absorbed with purified suspensions of vaccinia virus, red cowpox and white cowpox viruses. They were then tested for their ability to neutralize the viruses, and to precipitate the virus soluble antigens.The results showed that some virus specific antigens were not virus surface components and that some components were present on the surface of all three viruses. However, certain components were detected on the surface of vaccinia virus but not on the surface of cowpox virus, and vice versa. Some evidence for the existence of a vaccinia-specific surface component was also obtained.Comparisons between results of cross-neutralization tests and immunodiffusion tests on the absorbed sera indicated that antibody to a number of antigens, including the classical LS, and the cowpox-specific d antigen play no part in the process of poxvirus neutralization.

The existence of an envelope on extracellular cowpox virus and its antigenic relationship to the vaccinia envelope

“…The ihndamental significance of the vaccinia envelope in the biology a, nd pathogenesis of vaccinia requires that an investigation be made of human pathogenic poxviruses for the existence of an enveloped form. Cowpox is very closely related antigenically to vaccinia (1,5). The present report presents evidence for the occurrence of an enveloped form of cowpox and that the envelope contains antigens related to those in the envelope of vaccinia.…”

Possible antigenic sub-divisions within the variola/vaccinia subgroup of poxviruses

“…The results obtained may be due to qualitative differences in the heat stable surface antigens of the viruses, as has already been demonstrated for vaeeinia and cowpox viruses (1). Alternatively the results may be due to differences in the amount or importance of shared surface antigens.…”

“…During a detailed comparison of the surface antigens of vaccinia and cowpox viruses the chance observation was made that antisera made against heat-inactivated vaccinia virus would neutralize that virus but not cowpox virus (1). This result suggested that the genus Orthopoxvirus might be sub-divided on the basis of this simple test, and this paper describes the results obtained.…”

“…The antisera were prepared in rabbits by the inoculation of vaeeinia vii-as (Lister), obtained from infected rabbit dermis, purified by differential and density gradient eentrifugation and heated at 65 ° C for 1 hour before inoculation (1,9). A number of different inoculation schedules have provided antisera which gave similar results.…”

Antibody studies in natural bovine cowpox

“…For reasons still not clearly understood, vaccinia virus is often a more sensitive indicator of cowpox neutralizing antibody than cowpox itself (Baxby, 1972). All the sera were therefore initially tested for neutralizing antibody by using vaccinia virus.…”