The Chemical Structure of the Receptor Substance Involved in the Adsorption of TBE Virus to Erythrocytes (Die Chemische Struktur der bei der Adsorption von TBE-Virus an Erythrozyten Wirksamen Rezeptorsubstanz)

A technique is described which allows one to measure the capacity of certain substances to inhibit the hemagglutination of TBE virus under competitive conditions. When tested with this method, brain homogenates and extracts obtained from them with lipid solvents were more than 100 times as active as when investigated with the older techniques. Using solvent fractionation and different chromatographic procedures, the active factors could be isolated and were shown to consist of phosphatidylinositol diphosphate in combination with lecithin or with sphingomyelin. These choline-containing bases could be substituted by cetyltrimethylammonium bromide. A theory is suggested which assumes that proper alignment of receptor molecules and inhibitors is necessary for their reaction with the surface of the virus particle.