Minus-strand RNA synthesis in the spinal cords of mice persistently infected with Theiler's virus

Theiler's virus, a murine picornavirus, causes a chronic neurological disease characterized by primary demyelination in SJL/J mice. The lesions are very reminiscent of those of multiple sclerosis. Theiler's virus persists in oligodendrocytes and to a lesser extent in astrocytes and macrophages throughout the disease. Viral RNA and capsid protein syntheses are minimal in these cells. This restriction could play a central role in the mechanism of virus persistence. By quantitating plus- and minus-strand RNAs in infected central nervous system cells, we showed that RNA replication was blocked at the level of minus-strand RNA synthesis.