Some physico-chemical and biological properties of egg-Sendai virus with altered haemagglutinin-neuraminidase protein.

Some physico-chemical and biological properties of egg-cultivated Sendai (egg-Sendai) virus particles with altered haemagglutinin-neuraminidase (HN) protein were studied. These particles were obtained accidentally from purified egg-Sendai virus stored at +4 degrees C. Egg-Sendai with altered HN protein was not infectious for cultured cells, but could still infect embryonated eggs. Though egg-Sendai virus with altered HN protein and glycoproteins had no haemagglutination activity, it unexpectedly possessed a relatively high neuraminidase (NA) activity representing about 70% of the activity of normal particles. Since polyacrylamide gel and rocket immunoelectrophoresis indicated that the altered particles contained only F protein, possibly the native HN was converted into a molecule of the same molecular mass as F protein.