Specific Cell-Surface Alteration by Enteroviruses as Reflected by Viral-Attachment Interference

Abstract

Crowell, Richard L. (Hahnemann Medical College, Philadelphia, Pa.). Specific cell-surface alteration by enteroviruses as reflected by viral-attachment interference. J. Bacteriol. 91: 198–204. 1966.—Exposure of HeLa cells to high levels of coxsackievirus B3 produced cells which were refractory to attachment of coxsackievirus B1, whereas poliovirus T2 attached normally. Under similar conditions, poliovirus T2 was found to interfere with the attachment of poliovirus T1 to HeLa cells without affecting the attachment rate of coxsackievirus B3. The data confirm earlier findings that the receptor sites on HeLa cells, which bind members of group B coxsackieviruses, are distinct from those for polioviruses. Quantitatively, coxsackieviruses B1 and B3 were found to be mutually exclusive in the attachment interference assay to suggest that they compete for the same receptors on the HeLa cell surface. The finding that input multiplicities of B3 virus which exceeded 500 saturated the homologous viral receptors of HeLa cells was unexpected, but was consistent with the results of interference assays. Excessive amounts of input virus did not, however, inhibit eclipse of homologous cell-associated virus. Attachment interference between enteroviruses occurred even though the interfering virus was eclipsed prior to addition of challenge virus. The finding that enterovirus attachment interference was reversible with acid p H suggested that attachment and eclipse of enterovirus does not result in a permanent alteration of the cell membrane and that these events occur at the cell surface.