Evening star., 1950-10-11
Coxsuckie Polio Virus
Found in Chevy Chase
Discovered First in New York,
ItMokes Appearance Here
By Thomos R. Henry

Four years ago two persons in the
little city of Coxsackie in northern New
York became Ill of malady which local
doctors diagnosed as typical poltomye-
litis.
Tests by bacteriologistS at the State
health department Office in Albany. how
ever, failed to find the typical and un-
mistakable polio virus responsible for
the dreaded epidemic disease. Instead
they found a very similar virus which
never before had been reported. It was
set down at the time as medical curios-
ity.
But this fall there has been curious
epidemic around Washington-especially
in the Chevy Chase neighborhood
characterized by sore throat, severe pain
in the back of the head, general nausea,
weakness and loss Of appetite; and from
these patients has been recovered a
virus very similar to the one isolated at
Coxsackie.
40 Varieties Identified.
During the four intervening years the
same type Of virus has been found in
epidemics with various symptoms over
most Of the country; about 40 varieties
have been identified and it has been
demonstrated that about ten per cent Of
the adult population have been affected
at some time in their lives. Most attacks
presumably have been so mild that they
have gone unnoticed or have been mis-
taken for something like bad cold.
The CoXsackie viruSes now have be-
come one of the outstanding mysteries
Of medicine. They belong among the
fllterable viruseS, smallest Of living
things, which are among mans deadliest
enemies. With the single possible ex-
ception of the polio virus itself. they are
the smallest of all these infinitesimal
organisms too minute to be seen in any
kind of microscope and compared to
which most disease germs would be like
elephants compared with f1eas. They
usually are closely associated with polio.
None of them, however has been isolated
from any of the polio cases in the
District of Columbia this past summer.
Found In Sewage.
They have been found in sewage and
on the feet of house flies. Apparently
they are very widely distributed in ma
ture. They may represent a mutation
from their apparently very close rela-
tives, the polio viruses. On the other
hand, they may have existed much
longer in the world than their supposedly
more dangerous counterparts. Polio has
been recognized for nearly 200 years,
one of the first authenticated cases being
that of Sir Walter Scott who became q
lifelong cripple because of it.
For longer period malady popu-
larly known as summer grippe" has
been recognized. There is some reason
to believe that it may be due to the
Coxsackie virus which, so far as known.
does not cripple or kill.
Each of the 40 varieties known may
be responsible for somewhat different
symptoms diagnosed all the way from
mild colds to polio.
The Coxsackie virus is found in most
polio epidemics. 1t also is common in
association with another disease. epi-
denic pleurodynia, painful affection
resembling pleurisy, for which no causa-
tive agent has been identified.
Under Study in Bethesda.
The Coxsackie group of viruSes now
are being subjected to intensive study at
the National Institute of Health labora-
tories at Bethesda, Md, and at the New
York State Health Department labora-
tories Findings at the latter were re-
ported to the National Academy Of
Sciences, meeting at Schenectady today,
by DR.. Gilbert Dalldorf. s-
They are not, he pointed out, neces-
sarily something new in the world. They
may be very old, but very secretive.
Their tardy discovery" he said, lis
probably due to the fact that they can
be experimentally propagated only in i'm
mature mice and hamsters. Such test
animals have rarely been used. A second
peculiar property is that while they do
cause paralysis in sucking mice they do
so by destroying the skeletal muscles
rather than the nerve cells. They are
also uncommonly small probably no
larger than ten 1nillinicrons. CA mil
limicron is about millionth of an inch).
Both viruses Play Part.
1.-THE association of the Coxsackie
viruses with poliomyeletis is of peculiar
interest. 1t seems probable that the
summer epidemics of polio are actually
mixed epidemics in which both vtruses
play a part. The CoXSackie viruses ac-
count for some of the Illness"
A suggestion was made that polio virus
may be unable to function unless the
Coxsackie virus also Is present as a COL
laborator. On the other hand it may
render polio less severe. This pheno-
menon in respect to certain other dis
eases has been recognized for ten years.
They are less marked if there is stimuli
taneous infection by another agent. The
findings that Coxsackie viruses were not
associated with the D. C.. polio this
summer would seem to throw out the
first suggestion
The Importance of these newly found
disease agents hardly can be overesti-
mated, National Institute of Health
doctors say. Viruses. it is known, have
a very high mutation rate-that is.
change in hereditary characters. The
highly fatal bulbar polio of the past
few years, for example, may have
been due to a sudden mutation of the
polio virus. The Coxsackie virus appears
to be just on the borderline of some
thing very menacing. 1t might become
such with slight mutation.