Antibodies Reacting to Simian Virus 40 T Antigen in Human Sera

Summary

Antibodies reacting to simian virus 40 (SV40) T antigen in fluorescent antibody tests were detected in 13 successive serum specimens of a young renal transplant recipient. These sera had minimal or undetectable levels of SV40-neutralizing antibodies but high titers of antibodies to B.K. virus, an SV40-related papovavirus infection of man. There was no clinical or laboratory evidence that the patient had a tumor. In addition, SV40 T antigen-reactive antibodies were found in the sera of 2 of 30 Maryland children with B.K. hemagglutination inhibition antibody titers of 1:640 or above but in none of 75 children with titers ranging from <1:20 to 1:320. The 2 SV40 T antigen-reactive sera were negative for SV40-neutralizing antibodies. Hamster sera containing only SV40 T antibodies specifically stained the nuclei of B.K. virus-infected vero cells. These data suggest that the observed reaction of human sera with SV40 T antigen is the result of a minor antigenic relationship between T antigens of SV40 and B.K. virus.