Viral contamination of bovine fetal lung cultures and bovine fetal serum.

Commercial bovine fetal serum (BFS) and bovine fetal lung (BFL) cells were tested for viruses. The only virus detected in any samples was noncytopathogenic bovine viral diarrhea virus (BVDV). Of 37 BFL cultures initiated, 34 were negative for BVDV, 1 was positive, and 2 were suspicious in that the source of BVDV contamination was not certain. Of 9 lots of irradiated sera tested, 1 (10%) was positive for BVDV; of 21 lots of nonirradiated sera tested, 13 (62%) were positive for BVDV. As judged by intensity of fluorescence in infected cultures, some cell strains were much more susceptible to BVDV than other strains. Heat inactivation of serum at 56 C for 30 minutes was found to be an unreliable method of eliminating BVDV from sera.