Coxsackie Virus B₄ Produces Transient Diabetes in Nonhuman Primates

Cynomolgus, rhesus, and Cebus monkeys failed to show glucose tolerance or insulin secretion abnormalities after infection with encephalomyocarditis virus or Coxsackie virus B₄. Patas monkeys also showed no abnormalities after infection with encephalomyocarditis virus. However, patas monkeys infected with Coxsackie virus B₄ or treated first with a subdiabetogenic dose of streptozocin and then infected sequentially with Coxsackie viruses B₄ and B₃ showed transient elevation of glucose tolerance tests, depressed insulin secretion, and glucose in the urine. Our experiments in nonhuman primates support earlier studies in mice and humans that under certain circumstances, Coxsackie viruses can cause abnormalities in glucose homeostasis.