Lewis A J, Whitton J L, Hatalski C G, Weissenböck H, Lipkin W I
Department of Neurology, University of California, Irvine, California 92697-4292, USA.
J Virol. 1999 Mar;73(3):2541-6. doi: 10.1128/JVI.73.3.2541-2546.1999.
Borna disease virus (BDV) is a neurotropic virus with a broad host and geographic range. Lewis rats were immunized against BDV with a recombinant vaccinia virus expressing the BDV nucleoprotein and were later infected with BDV to evaluate protection against Borna disease (BD). Relative to animals that were not immunized, immunized animals had a decreased viral burden after challenge with infectious virus, more marked inflammation, and aggravated clinical disease. These data suggest that a more robust immune response in Borna disease can reduce viral load at the expense of increased morbidity.