Adenovirus serum neutralization in micro-tissue cultures of rhesus monkey kidney cells

A micro-tissue culture assay using 2nd passage cells of primary rhesus monkey kidney for the neutralization of human adenovirus types is described. All 31 serotypes of adenovirus showed characteristic cytopathic changes 3 to 4 days after initiation of the test, and serum antibody titers were established on the 5th day. Virus infectivity and serum antibody titers were found to be greater than in the conventional tube test. Replicate neutralization test results demonstrated the good reproducibility of the micro assay. Heterotypic neutralization tests were carried out on six representative equine reference sera with all prototype viruses, and the specificity of the micro-assay system was established. Preliminary experiments indicated that 2nd passage Cercopithecus monkey kidney cells were also suitable for the micro-neutralization assay.