The relation of the Krebs cycle to viral synthesis. II. The effect of sodium fluoroacetate on the propagation of influenza virus in mice.

A further study has been made of the relationship of reactions of the Krebs cycle to the propagation of influenza virus. By the administration of sublethal doses of sodium fluoroacetate which were found to increase the concentration of citrate in the mouse lung, it was possible to demonstrate a blocking of the citric acid cycle in that organ. Further, the intraperitoneal administration of these concentrations of fluoroacetate was found to inhibit markedly the propagation of influenza, Type A, virus in the lungs of mice. The inhibition was observed when the fluoroacetate was administered 15 minutes, 6 hours, or 12 hours after the mice were inoculated with virus. This effect was also demonstrable when the concentration of the viral inoculum was varied over a range of virus titers from 10(3.5) to 10(6.5). Sodium fluoroacetate was found to have no effect in vitro on the infectivity or hemagglutinating property of the virus. The significance of these findings with regard to chemotherapy and to the mechanism of viral synthesis is described.