Cytopathology of Tissues from Chicken Embryos Infected with Venezuelan Equine Encephalomyelitis Virus

Abstract

The morphology and morphogenesis of Venezuelan equine encephalomyelitis (VEE) virus in cultured cells and suckling mouse brains have been described.1-3 Briefly, VEE virus entered cells by viropexis and was uncoated; the virus RNA induced virus-specific synthesis which resulted in viroplasms where nucleoids were formed. Virions were formed by nucleoids that budded through plasma or cytoplasmic organelle membranes. Ten to 11-day-old embryonating chicken eggs were inoculated with VEE virus (TC-83 vaccine strain) and incubated until the embryos showed terminal stages of the disease at 19 hours after infection. Liver, lung, heart, kidney, and skin samples from the embryos were processed for viewing in thin section.4