Serologic screening of rhesus and grivet monkeys for SV40 and the foamy viruses.

Abstract

SummaryProgress toward the elimination of SV40 and the foamy viruses from primary cell cultures of monkey kidney has been achieved by a complement fixation-antibody screening test. Data obtained over a 2-year period with a large number of rhesus and grivet monkeys indicate that the test was 85-98% effective in selecting monkeys free of foamy virus contamination, and approximately 80% effective in selecting rhesus monkeys free of SV40. Valid results with the foamy virus CF tests were obtained only when rhesus monkeys were screened with a serotype I foamy virus antigen, and grivet monkeys with serotype II or III foamy virus antigens. Analysis of serologic and virus-isolation data obtained over a 4-year period revealed that approximately 50% of the rhesus monkey sera tested were CF-positive for type I foamy virus and 16% were positive for SV40. With grivet monkeys, approximately 60% were CF-positive for type II foamy virus, and none were positive for SV40.