P~ 94(Received for publication, July 13, 1962.) Viral carrier states in cell cultures have been described by several investigators using a variety of virus-cell systems (reviewed in reference 1). Because of techniques applicable to cell cultures, such carrier states would seem to offer particularly good opportunities to gain understanding of interactions of virus and cell that may be important to those naturally occurring infections in which viruses invade and remain in hosts for relatively long periods without causing apparent harm. From the studies already reported, however, it is evident that there is considerable variation in the virus-cell relationships found in carrier systems in vitro. This is to be expected since, at least superficially, the examples of persistent, inapparent viral infections found in man and animals present a diversity of characteristics. Those carrier cultures so far described have, however, usually had several things in common in that they often have utilized cells relatively resistant to the virus; many have required antibody in the medium or have appeared to depend upon some form of interference for protection of the cells; many show evidence for infection of only a small proportion of the cells in the culture. In this and the following paper we shall describe a virus carrier system that is unusual in its combination of features that include (a) lack of any requirement for antibody, (b) indication that there is not a selection of resistant cells, (c) alteration in the cytopathogenicity of the persisting virus, (d) infection of almost all of the cells of the culture, and (e) indication that infected cells are capable of repeated division.
Materials and MethodsViruses.--The Dunai strain of mumps virus was isolated from a patient with parotitis (2) by inoculation of throat washings into the amniotie sac of the chick embryo. After the initial amniofic passage, it was cultivated in human conjunctiva cells.