[The isolation of measles virus strains and the study of their hemagglutinating activity].

Three measles strains Gag, Il, and Buk, were isolated from a suspension of mononuclear cells derived from measles patients in the active stage of the disease. Continuous Vero cell cultures were used for virus isolation. In the infected cell culture, all the isolates produced symplasts of different sizes and star-shaped or spindle-shaped multinuclear cells. The specificity of the cytopathic effect was proved by the adsorption of monkey erythrocytes on the surface of virus-affected cells. The isolates were identified in neutralization and HI tests with different immune preparations: measles gamma-globulin (national standard), hyperimmune rabbit sera to measles (Edmonston strain), rubella, and mumps viruses, S. sonnei and S. flexneri, as well as with sera from measles patients and subjects vaccinated with live measles vaccine L-16. The results of identification attest to isolation of 3 measles virus strains, one of which (Buk) possesses particularly high hemagglutinating activity.