Antibodies Are Not Essential for the Resolution of Primary Cytomegalovirus Infection but Limit Dissemination of Recurrent Virus

Virus shedding from the epithelial cells of the serous acini of
salivary glands is a major source for the horizontal transmission
of cytomegalovirus. These cells are, different to other tissues,
exempt from CD8 T lymphocyte control. CD4 T lymphocytes are
essential to terminate the productive infection. Here, we prove
that T-B cooperation and the production of antibodies are not
required for this process. For the infection with murine
cytomegalovirus, mutant mice were used which do not produce
antibodies because of a disrupted membrane exon of the
immunoglobulin # chain gene. Also, in these mice the virus
clearance from salivary glands is a function of CD4 T lymphocytes.
However, these mice clear the virus and establish viral latency
with a kinetics that is distinguishable from normal mice.
Reactivation from virus latency is the only stage at which the
absence of antibodies alters the phenotype of infection. In
immunoglobulindeficient mice, virus recurrence results in higher
virus titers. The adoptive serum transfer proved that antibody is
the limited factor that prevents virus dissemination in the
immunodeficient host