Detection of rinderpest virus antigens in vitro and in vivo by direct immunofluorescence.

Cell-culture attenuated and virulent strains of rinderpest virus (RV) were inoculated on to bovine kidney cell cultures. A direct immunofluorescent antibody test detected RV antigens in cell cultures within one to three days after inoculation whereas RV cytopathic effects usually took three to nine days to develop. Cells containing RV antigens were also detected in impression smears and frozen sections of tissues collected from RV infected animals at post mortem examination, and in smears of lymph node biopsies taken from cattle with clinical rinderpest. These techniques may offer additional methods for rapid diagnosis of rinderpest.