Individual cells in tissues of DHBV-infected ducks express antigens crossreactive with those on virus surface antigen particles and immature viral cores.

Double immunofluorescence assays of fixed sections of tissues from Pekin ducks congenitally infected with duck hepatitis B virus were carried out to score cells reactive to antiserum elicited either to viral DNA synthesis complexes (immature cores) purified from liver of infected ducks or to viral surface antigen particles and virions purified from sera of viremic ducks. Subpopulations of doubly fluorescent cells were detectable in liver (hepatocytes and bile duct epithelia), in kidney (proximal tubular epithelia), and in pancreas (acinar-associated cells and endocrine alpha and beta cells); all cells reactive with one antiserum were reactive with the second antiserum. Competition assays established that the cell-associated antigens recognized by the two antisera were mutually non-crossreactive. The cell-associated antigen recognized by the antiserum elicited to the purified immature cores appears to be crossreactive with a 35,000-Da polypeptide fraction associated with immature cores.