Abstract

EMC virus causes a lethal infection in baboon monkeys within 4–8 days following subcutaneous injection with 10 4–10 8 pfu of virus. The infection is accompanied by viremia, invasion of heart muscle and of brain. Monkeys infected with 10 6 pfu of EMC virus were treated with human leukocyte interferon. The interferon was injected intramuscularly first 0, 0.5, 6 and 24 h post-infection, then twice daily with a dose of 3 × 10 6 units for 5 consecutive days. All the monkeys treated with interferon remained alive and healthy. Animals infected with EMC virus, but not treated with interferon died within 6 days with evidence of myocarditis. The EMC virus-interferon interaction in baboon monkeys seems to provide a useful primate model system for testing the prophylactic and therapeutic antiviral activity of interferons or other antiviral substances.

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