Antigenic characterization of respiratory syncytial virus group A and B isolates in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

The antigenic characteristics of 87 strains of respiratory syncytial virus isolated in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from 1982 to 1988 were determined with a panel of monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) in an enzyme immunoassay. Four of these MAbs immunoprecipitated the fusion protein, and five immunoprecipitated the large glycoprotein. On the basis of the patterns of reaction of these MAbs to respiratory syncytial virus isolates in an enzyme immunoassay, we were able to separate isolates into the two major groups, A and B, and also to identify four variants within group A and three within group B. Strains from groups A and B were isolated each year, and the prevalence of the two groups varied over the seven study years.