Effect of Vesicular Stomatitis Virus and Semliki Forest Virus on Uptake of Nutrients and Intracellular Cation Concentration

BHK-21 cells showed an increased ability to concentrate 2-deoxy-D-glucose (dGlc) 2 to 3 h after infection with vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV) or Semliki Forest virus (SFV), which began to be released at 2 and 3 h post-infection respectively; uptake of other nutrients was not affected in this way. Intracellular Na+ was either unchanged (VSV-infected cells) or increased (SFV-infected cells); K+ content was unchanged. These results do not support the current hypothesis that a non-specific increase in membrane permeability occurs in cells infected with rhabdoviruses or togaviruses.