ABSTRACT. In order to evaluate and enhance the sensitivity of the neutralization (NT) test for detecting antibody in pigs infected with porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS) virus, the effect of altered incubation conditions and complement use on neutralizing (NT) antibody titer were investigated. Higher NT antibody titers were consistently obtained by addition of 20% guinea pig fresh serum to virus-serum mixtures in NT tests. Furthermore, the complement-requiring NT antibody titer increased in many serum samples when the virus-serum mixtures, rather than being incubated at 37 °C for 60 min, were incubated first at 4 °C for 48 hr and then with a complement at 37 °C for 60 min. The slow-reacting and complement-requiring NT antibody was detected as early as 8 days post-inoculation. It was detected in sera collected at 8 to 28 days post-inoculation and was sensitive to 2-mercaptoethanol treatment. Sera collected at 35 to 44 days post-inoculation contained 2-mercaptoethanol resistant NT antibodies. These results indicate that the modified NT test is useful for early serodiagnosis of PRRS virus infection through detection of higher NT antibody titers, and in detecting them earlier.
MATERIALS AND METHODSCell culture: The MARC-145 cells were derived from a monkey kidney cell line (MA-104) [4]. The cells were grown in Eagle's minimum essential medium (MEM) containing 8% fetal calf serum. The maintenance medium was MEM containing 2% fetal calf serum and 50 µg/ml of gentamycin.Virus: The EDRD-1 strain of PRRS virus at the 10 to 13th passage level in MARC-145 cell cultures was used [7]. Culture fluid harvested from infected MARC-145 cell cultures was clarified by centrifugation and stored at 80°C. The infectivity assay was carried out in 96-well microplate cultures of MARC-145 cells. The inoculated cultures were examined for CPE after incubation at 37 °C for 5 days, and the 50% infectious dose (TCID 50 ) was calculated.Experimental infection of pigs: The method of experimental infection has been described previously [7]. Briefly, three 7-week-old pigs (No. 1-3) initially seronegative for the PRRS virus were infected intranasally with 2 ml of 10 6.4 TCID 50 /ml of the EDRD-1 strain of the PRRS virus. One pig (No. 4) served as an in-contact control. Serial serum samples were collected daily until 14 days post-inoculation, after which they were collected once weekly.NT test: The NT test was carried out in flat-bottomed 96-well microplates. In tests, serial 2-fold dilutions of the serum inactivated at 56°C for 30 min were made in the maintenance medium. In conventional NT tests, 120 µl of each dilution was mixed with an equal volume of Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS) virus, family Arteriviridae, causes reproductive disturbance in sows and respiratory distress in piglets, and is prevalent worldwide [1,2,4,5,[7][8][9][10].The neutralization (NT) test, the immunoperioxidase monolayer assay (IPMA), the indirect immunofluorescence (IIF), and the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) have all...