Theiler's virus in brain cell cultures: lysis of neurons and oligodendrocytes and persistence in astrocytes and macrophages.

The mechanisms of persistence and of demyelination in Theiler's virus (TV)-induced chronic neurologic disease (a murine model for multiple sclerosis) are, as yet, disputed. We investigated the tropism and persistence of TV in brain cell culture to better understand the pathogenesis of this disease. Using anti-genic markers to identify specific cells in culture, we have demonstrated that TV infects, lytically, neurons and oligodendrocytes and persistently astrocytes and macrophages. These results suggest that host cell factors play a key role in the mechanism of demyelination and the persistence of TV in the nervous system.