Authors would like to acknowledge Dr. Frank Scholle for his helpful comments in the manuscript, Chloe Mariant for her help with the microscopy images and Teresa M. Tiedge for her helpful English revision.

1. Titration protocol
NOTE: Use a cytopathic virus infecting adherent cells. For this demonstration, Influenza A Virus (IAV) of swine origin (A/California/07/2009/(H1N1)) and Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome Virus (PRRSV) Type 2, strain NC 1-7-4 were used.
<ol>
	<li>Titrate these viruses in 96 well plates for 7 days in a biosafety cabinet located in a Biosafety Level 2 (BSL-2) laboratory.
	<ol>
		<li>To perform these titrations, seed 96 well plates with the requ...

<ol>
	<li>K&#228;rber, G. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Contribution+to+the+collective+treatment+of+pharmacological+series+experiments.">Contribution to the collective treatment of pharmacological series experiments.</a> Naunyn-Schmiedeberg's Archive for Experimental Pathology and Pharmacology. 162 (4), 480-483 (1931).</li><li>Ramakrishnan, M. A. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Determination+of+50%+endpoint+titer+using+a+simple+formula.">Determination of 50% endpoint titer using a simple formula.</a> World Journal of Virology. 5 (2), 85-86 (2016).</li><li>Reed, L. J., Muench, H. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=A+simple+method+of+estimating+fifty+per+cent+endpoints.">A simple method of estimating fifty per cent endpoints.</a> American Journal of Epidemiology. 27 (3), 493-497 (1938).</li><li>Spearman, C. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=The+method+of+right+and+wrong+cases+(constant+stimuli)+without+Gauss's+formulae.">The method of right and wrong cases (constant stimuli) without Gauss's formulae.</a> British Journal of Psychology. 2 (3), 227 (1908).</li><li>Darling, A. J., Boose, J. A., Spaltro, J. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Virus+assay+methods:+accuracy+and+validation.">Virus assay methods: accuracy and validation.</a> Biologicals. 26 (2), 105-110 (1998).</li><li>Kim, J., Chae, C. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=A+comparison+of+virus+isolation,+polymerase+chain+reaction,+immunohistochemistry,+and+in+situ+hybridization+for+the+detection+of+porcine+circovirus+2+and+porcine+parvovirus+in+experimentally+and+naturally+coinfected+pigs.">A comparison of virus isolation, polymerase chain reaction, immunohistochemistry, and in situ hybridization for the detection of porcine circovirus 2 and porcine parvovirus in experimentally and naturally coinfected pigs.</a> Journal of Veterinary Diagnostic Investigation. 16 (1), 45-50 (2004).</li><li>Suchman, E., Blair, C. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Cytopathic+effects+of+viruses+protocols.">Cytopathic effects of viruses protocols.</a> American Society of Microbiology. , (2007).</li><li>Karakus, U., Crameri, M., Lanz, C., Y&#225;ng&#252;ez, E. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=.">.</a> Influenza Virus. , 59-88 (2018).</li><li>Tingstedt, J. -. E., Nielsen, J. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Cellular+immune+responses+in+the+lungs+of+pigs+infected+in+utero+with+PRRSV:+an+immunohistochemical+study.">Cellular immune responses in the lungs of pigs infected in utero with PRRSV: an immunohistochemical study.</a> Viral Immunology. 17 (4), 558-564 (2004).</li><li>Guarner, J., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Immunohistochemical+and+in+situ+hybridization+studies+of+influenza+A+virus+infection+in+human+lungs.">Immunohistochemical and in situ hybridization studies of influenza A virus infection in human lungs.</a> American Journal of Clinical Pathology. 114 (2), 227-233 (2000).</li><li>Nicholls, J. M., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Detection+of+highly+pathogenic+influenza+and+pandemic+influenza+virus+in+formalin+fixed+tissues+by+immunohistochemical+methods.">Detection of highly pathogenic influenza and pandemic influenza virus in formalin fixed tissues by immunohistochemical methods.</a> Journal of Virological Methods. 179 (2), 409-413 (2012).</li></ol>

Viral titrations are routinely used in virology research, with PFU detection and TCID50 assays most commonly used1,2,3,4. Both methods rely on the detection of CPE in infected cells, and even though they can be visually assessed via microscopy, a staining is usually applied to obtain a more objective result or to even reduce incubation times. In the case of TCID50, one of the most comm...

Viral titration via TCID50 assay is a commonly used technique in infectious disease research1. Although variations on the math behind this method have been proposed over time1,2,3,4, the currently applied methods of infection detection rely on visual confirmation through the presence of cytopathic effect (CPE) using microscopy5. To confirm CPE visualization more objectively on TCID50 assays, immunocytochemical (ICC) intracellular staining targeting the proteins of the virus is one of the most-commonly used methods6 as different viruses can produce varying forms of CPE. In our case, the cell morphological changes are similar when infected with both Influenza A virus (IAV) and Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome Virus (PRRSV), where infected cells round up and detach from the plate. In the case of PRRSV, it causes a CPE known as &#34;total destruction&#34;, where all cells end up detaching from the well. IAV on the other hand, can present both total destruction and an additional CPE known as &#34;subtotal destruction&#34; where a small number of cells do not detach after infection7. However, this technique is time consuming to perform and requires the use of relatively costly reagents. It is important to note that ICC does not label CPE, but rather the number of cells successfully infected by the virus. This implies that the cells that were successfully infected by the end of the incubation will be seen as positive even if the infection has not caused CPE yet, and thus, a higher percentage of ICC positive cells compared to CPE is expected. For that reason, in this study we describe a complementary method of visual detection of CPE in a TCID50 assay based on crystal violet, a chemical with a positive charge that attaches to cell membranes and is used to stain adherent cells. Crystal violet is often utilized in virology research to measure plaque-forming units, among others8.
In this study, we compare the sensitivity of non-stained microscopy CPE detection with crystal violet staining and immunocytochemical staining based on viral protein recognition, which is known to be more objective due to its high sensitivity. This study shows that both crystal violet and immunocytochemical staining are more accurate than visual microscopy-based CPE detection and can be used to objectively identify infected wells in a TCID50 titration. Given their ability to reach nearly identical level of accuracy on the cytopathic viruses tested in cell lines, crystal violet is presented as a faster and more affordable way to determine viral titrations on a TCID50 assay. The proposed method using crystal violet staining takes a total time of 40 min to perform, with 15 min for paraformaldehyde (PFA) incubation, 5 min for crystal violet incubation and a maximum of 15 min for material preparation, buffer washes, and drying. The immunocytochemistry protocol applied for comparison takes an average time of 4 h 30 min and was performed as previously described9,10. The method proposed aims to help visualize a completed viral titration. Infection and incubation times can be performed with different layout depending on the virus. Here we tested two RNA viruses with cytopathic effect on cell lines.

<table border="1" fo:keep-together.within-page="1" fo:keep-with-next.within-page="always">
	<tbody>
		<tr>
			<td>96-well cell culture plates</td>
			<td>Genesee</td>
			<td>25-221</td>
			<td>Clear, flat bottom</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>AEC solution</td>
			<td>Thermo Fisher</td>
			<td>1122</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Crystal violet</td>
			<td>Thermo Fisher</td>
			<td>C581-25; C581-100</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>DMEM</td>
			<td>Corning</td>
			<td>10-017-CV</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Fetal bovine serum</td>
			<td>BioWest</td>
			<td>S1480</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Paraformaldehide</td>
			<td>Thermo Fisher</td>
			<td>J19943</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Primary Influenza Antibody</td>
			<td>Bioss</td>
			<td>BS-0344R</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Primary PRRSV Antibody</td>
			<td>Bioss</td>
			<td>BS-10043R</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Saponin</td>
			<td>Thermo Scientific</td>
			<td>AAA1882014</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Secondaty antibody</td>
			<td>Invitrogen</td>
			<td>31460</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Tris Hydrochloride</td>
			<td>Thermo Scientific</td>
			<td>AM9856</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
	</tbody>
</table>

use of crystal violet to improve visual cytopathic effect-based reading for viral titration using tcid50 assays

Viral titration is a key assay for virology research. The detection of cytopathic effect (CPE) via TCID50 assays and plaque-forming units (PFU) assays are the two main methods to calculate the titer of a virus stock and are often based on microscopy detection or cell staining for visualization. In the case of TCID50 assay, objective visualization is commonly based on immunocytochemical (ICC) staining of intracellular virus to calculate titers combined with visual CPE detection via microscopy. However, ICC staining is costly and time consuming. In this study, we compared visual CPE observation via microscopy, ICC staining and crystal violet staining to determine the titers of two CPE-forming viruses, Influenza A virus (IAV) of swine origin and Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome virus (PRRSV). We show that both crystal violet and ICC staining are more accurate than visual CPE detection, presenting nearly identical levels of precision on both IAV and PRRSV. For this reason, here we present crystal violet staining as a faster and more affordable way to determine viral titrations on a TCID50 assay for CPE-forming viruses titrated in cell lines.

The equations used for mathematically calculating the titer were previously described2,3.
Briefly, for PRRSV, we apply the Karber method:
Titer (TCID50) = 10 T + 1.3 where:
<img alt="Equation 1" src="/files/ftp_upload/63063/63063eq01.jpg" />
In this formula d = negative log of the last dilution with complete positive virus response: five posi...

Watch this Scientific Journal Video about Use of Crystal Violet to Improve Visual Cytopathic Effect-based Reading for Viral Titration using TCID50 Assays at JoVE.com

Use of Crystal Violet to Improve Visual Cytopathic Effect-based Reading for Viral Titration using TCID50 Assays

This protocol shows an accurate and objective approach to visualize viral titrations using crystal violet, by comparing it with optical microscopy and immunocytochemical staining.

Viral titration is a key assay for virology research. The detection of cytopathic effect (CPE) via TCID50 assays and plaque-forming units (PFU) assays are ...

The goal of this protocol is to produce a virus stock titration and visualize it using crystal violet staining. To do that, a general viral titration will be demonstrated followed by the staining. This titration will be performed in a 96-well plate for a period of seven days in a biosafety cabinet within a biosafety level 2 laboratory.To do so, a 96-well plate of the preferred cell line will be seeded using the corresponding media and let grow until confluent. The virus stock will be the diluted using tenfold dilutions, by mixing 900 microliters of media and 100 microliters of virus, or the corresponding dilution. Make sure to vortex each tube to ensure proper mixing of the media and the virus and avoid errors on the dilutions.Write the layout of your plate in the lead as well as each dilution to help during infection process. Before infection, wash using 200 microliters of PBS. Add 50 microliters of your inoculum in the corresponding wells.Then, incubate at 37 degrees celsius in a 5%CO2 incubator for seven days. After the seven day incubation, wash using 200 microliters of PBS. Fix the cells by adding 50 microliters per well of PFA at 4%in PBS and incubate for 15 minutes at room temperature.After incubation, wash cells again twice with 200 microliters of PBS prior to the addition of 50 microliters per well of crystal violet in water and incubate for five minutes at room temperature. Finally, aspirate crystal violet from the wells and optionally, leave the plates to air dry for two to five minutes at room temperature or wash it with 200 microliters of water to remove excessive stain before visualization. As a result, after re-staining, negative cells will be stained.Positive wells will be cleared. This information will be used in one of the two described formulas to calculate your final viral titer. When the titer obtained with each method was compared, it showed that in monocyto chemistry staining could in some cases detect additional positive wells in comparison with crystal violet, and that likewise, both staining methods could detect more positive wells than visual evaluation via microscopy.

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Research

JoVE Journal

Immunology and Infection

11.5K Views.  North Carolina State University. L'obiettivo di questo protocollo è quello di produrre una titolazione delle scorte di virus e visualizzarla utilizzando la colorazione viola cristallina. Per fare ciò, verrà dimostrata una titolazione virale generale seguita dalla colorazione. Questa titolazione sarà eseguita in una piastra da 96 pozzetti per un periodo di sette giorni in un armadio di biosicurezza all'interno di un laboratorio di livello di biosicurezza 2.Per fare ciò, una piastra a 96 pozzetti della linea cellul...