Selective infections of olfactory and respiratory epithelium by vesicular stomatitis and Sendai viruses.

Following intranasal instillation of vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV) in mice there was an extensive infection of the olfactory epithelium in contrast to a minimal involvement of the respiratory epithelium. Sendai virus (SV), on the other hand, caused an extensive infection of the respiratory epithelium and only minimal infection of the olfactory mucous membrane. VSV budded from basolateral surfaces of supporting cells and olfactory neurons, but not from their apical surfaces or the ciliated bulbous endings of the olfactory neuron dendrites. This asymmetric release of VSV favoured neuroinvasion. The virus spread along the olfactory nerves to the glomeruli in the olfactory bulbs after which it propagated transneuronally into the rest of the brain. SV budded only from the apical surface of respiratory epithelial cells, was released into the air passages, and there were no signs of invasion into the olfactory bulbs. Inoculation of the olfactory mucous membrane is a useful procedure for studies on selectivity of attack on peripheral neurons by viruses and on mechanisms of virus invasion of the nervous system in vivo.