Viral shedding and transmission between hosts determined by reovirus L2 gene.

Two reovirus isolates (type 1 Lang and type 3 Dearing) differ in their transmissibility between littermates of newborn mice. They also differ in the amounts of virus excreted by the gastrointestinal tract. With the use of reassortant viruses, these properties were mapped to the L2 gene. Thus environmental spread of reovirus is a genetic property.