[Genomic changes in strains of the tick-borne encephalitis virus as a result of passages in mice].

Changes in genomes of TBE strains isolated from various sources at early stages of laboratory adaptation to white mice brain were demonstrated by molecular hybridization of nucleic acids with synthetic oligonucleotide probes, complementary RNA sites of reference TBE strains Sofyin and Neudorf. Of the 4 TBE strains passed 6 times through white mice brain in only 1 the level of RNA hybridization with 2 oligonucleotide probes was found changed, whereas in all the 3 tested strains the level of RNA hybridization with 1-2 oligonucleotide probes complementary to strain Sofyin was increased after 7-16 passages in the same system. The most noticeable changes in the genome were detected during readaptation to white mice of a TBE variant selected in passages on H. marginatum marginatum ticks.