Epstein-Barr virus infection of epithelial cells derived from primary cultures of adenoidal tissue.

Epithelial cells derived from primary cultures of adenoidal tissue were exposed to Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) from the throat washings of a patient with infectious mononucleosis (IM) and P3HR-1 and B95-8 cell strains. They were then examined for EBV-specific antigens by immunofluorescence. EBV from both the P3HR-1 cell strains and the throat washings of the IM patient infected the epithelial cells at the 6th and 9th days, respectively. Although the EBV-antigen-positive cells did not increase in number and disappeared at the 12th day after infection, EBV antigens of the virus's replication cycle could still be detected in the epithelial cells shed from cell culture layer at this time. However, the virus obtained from the cell-free 12th day's culture medium was incapable of transforming cord blood lymphocytes.