An ex vivo assay for estimating the antiviral state of hepatocytes.

An ex vivo antiviral assay was established which uses hepatocytes from mice given recombinant mouse interferon-beta (rmIFN-beta). Assay results were compared with results obtained with a 2',5'-oligoadenylate synthetase (2-5AS) assay. rmIFN-beta was intraperitoneally administered to C3H mice and the antiviral state of their liver parenchymal cells was evaluated in an in vitro cytopathic effect assay. In this assay, cells are infected with vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV) and surviving cells are determined colorimetrically. The antiviral state was measured as the resistance of hepatocytes to VSV infection with increasing doses of rmIFN-beta. The antiviral state correlated well with the dose-dependent increase in hepatic 2-5AS activity. This good correlation suggests that induction of 2-5AS mediates the antiviral action of interferon in liver tissue. This ex vivo assay could be a useful tool for estimating the ability of hepatocytes to resist hepatitis virus infection.