Owl Eye

 1956 – Margaret Gladys Smith (Washington University, St. Louis) achieved the first successful isolation of human cytomegalovirus (then called salivary gland virus) from tissue culture of human adenoids.

The term Cytomegalovirus (CMV) was adopted in the late 1950s–1960s, reflecting the hallmark feature of cytomegaly (enlarged cells with intranuclear inclusions).

Named Cytomegalovirus in the mid-20th century for its hallmark giant “owl’s eye” cells.

Congenital Cytomegalovirus Infection 

1940s–1950s: Autopsies of infants with congenital CMV showed large inclusion-bearing cells in the brain with periventricular necrosis and calcifications.

Periventricular calcifications are the classic radiological marker of congenital CMV infection, reflecting viral destruction of periventricular germinal matrix tissue during early brain development. They are strongly associated with microcephaly, developmental delay, seizures, and hearing loss.

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