LABORATORY CHARACTERIZATION OF INFLUENZA A VIRUSES (H3N2) - PATHOGENS OF LENINGRAD 1983 EPIDEMIC

  • 1 July 1986
    • journal article
    • research article
    • Vol. 30  (4) , 294-+
Abstract
Seventy strains of influenza A virus (H3N2) isolated in Leningrad during the influenza epidemic in January-March 1983 were studied. The virus isolates appeared to be markedly heterogeneous with respect to antigenic characteristics of surface glycoproteins, biological properties (haemagglutinating and neuraminidase activities, sensitivity to .gamma.-inhibitors, etc.) as well as genome structure. The identity of the virus isolates with the reference influenza A virus was as follows: 10% were similar to A/Texas/1/77 virus, 30% to A/Bangkok/1/79 virus, and 20% to A/Philippines/2/82 virus. A large part of the isolated viruses (27 of 70) were characterized by a certain (mainly unilateral) relatedness with the virus A/Victoria/35/72. The isolates were extremely heterogeneous with respect to genomic characteristics as determined by cRNA-vRNA hybridization test and differed from the corresponding reference strains by the homology of genes 1-6.