Hepatitis A virus infection in a chimpanzee: duration of viremia and detection of virus in saliva and throat swabs.

The pathogenesis of hepatitis A virus was studied by orally inoculating a chimpanzee with wild-type virus. The virus was initially detected in the animal's serum (day 14 after inoculation); then viral antigen was detected in the tonsils (day 16), virus in the saliva and throat swabs (day 18), and viral antigen in the liver (day 21). The animal was viremic for 2 w. While this study involved a single animal, the presence of hepatitis A virus in saliva and throat swabs suggests a possible oropharyngeal site for viral replication.