Virus titration and identification system

Abstract

The improved virus titration and identification system of the present invention comprises a transparent plate having a plurality of spaced wells arranged in a plurality of spaced rows. A dried, preferably freeze-dried, amount of viable specific virus antiserum or a dried, preferably freeze-dried, amount of normal serum is disposed in each well. All wells containing a given specific antiserum are aligned in a single row of a given direction and all of the rows which contain antiserum are aligned with each other. In one embodiment, the system includes a reference locator disposed on the transparent plate and movable relative thereto. The locator comprises a sheet defining a pair of intersecting light-transmitting windows of specific length. Such windows may be slots in the sheet and may intersect each other at about their mid-points. Preferably, the plate has the wells arranged in a rectangular pattern, so that there are rows of wells in two different orientations at about 90.degree. from each other, the locator windows having the same orientation. The present method of virus identification includes collecting and isolating a virus to form an isolate, then exposing the isolate in a plurality of separate aliquots at various concentrations to equal amounts of different specific viable virus antisera and normal serum incorporated in the wells of the plate. The aliquots then have equal amounts of test culture cells added to them and incubated in them until a cytopathic effect of the virus being tested in the aliquots can be determined by microscopic observation of the test culture cells, such determination indicating the type and strength of the virus. The contacting, incubation and cytopathic determination called for in the method are most advantageously carried out utilizing the above-identified improved system of the invention.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.