Measles virus-induced migration inhibition of human leukocytes in vitro: an expression of cell-mediated immunity?

Attempts were made to establish measles virus-induced migration inhibition of human leukocytes as an in vitro test of cell-mediated immunity to the virus. Crude material from cell cultures infected with two different strains of measles virus was used as antigen in the capillary modification of the test. Both virus preparations induced migration inhibition. Incubation with puromycin indicated that the inhibition was dependent on protein synthesis, which has been regarded as a characteristic feature of an immunologically specific inhibition. However, no difference was found when the migration inhibition of leukocytes from donors without clinical and serological evidence of previous measles infection was compared with that of leukocytes from donors with such evidence. It is concluded that the migration inhibition induced by crude measles virus material does not necessarily measure cell-mediated immunity to the virus.