Description
We undertook a survey of gene expression changes in primary microglial cultures with and without neurovirulent (FrCasE) and non-neurovirulent (Fr57E) virus infection to identify physiological changes that could be relevant to the induction of spongiform neurodegeneration. These gene expression analyses were performed using Affymetrix 430A mouse GeneChips (5 chips for each of the three experimental conditions, representing over 14,000 murine genes and ESTs. RNA from 5 separate microglial culture preparations were analyzed for Control (mock infected), Fr57E-, and FrCasE-infected microglia. Present/absent calls were based on MicroArray Suite 5.0 from Affymetrix. Affymetrix CEL files were analyzed using dChip software after normalization of the data between all 15 arrays. Statistical analyses were performed using ANOVA.