Chemokines are pivotal in the trafficking of leukocytes. In the present study, we examined the expression of multiple chemokine genes during the course of lymphocytic choriomeningitis (LCM) in mice. In noninfected mice, no detectable chemokine gene expression was found in the brain; however, by day 3 postinfection, the induction of a number of chemokine mRNAs was observed as follows (in order from the greatest to the least): cytokine responsive gene-2 or interferon-inducible 10-kDa protein (Crg-2/IP-10), RANTES, monocyte chemotactic protein-1 (MCP-1), macrophage inflammatory protein-1 (MIP-1beta), and MCP-3. At day 6 postinfection, the expression of these chemokine mRNAs was increased, and low expression of lymphotactin, C10, MIP-2, and MIP-1alpha mRNAs was detectable. Transcript for T-cell activation-3 was not detectable in the brain at any time following LCM virus (LCMV) infection. With some exceptions, a pattern of chemokine gene expression similar to that in the brain was observed in the peripheral organs of LCMV-infected mice. Mice that lacked expression of gamma interferon developed LCM and had a qualitatively similar but quantitatively reduced cerebral chemokine gene expression profile. In contrast, little or no chemokine gene expression was detectable in the brains of LCMV-infected athymic mice which did not develop LCM. Expression of Crg-2/IP-10 RNA was localized to predominantly resident cells of the central nervous system (CNS) and overlapped with sites of viral infection and immune cell infiltration. These findings demonstrate the expression of a number of chemokine genes in the brains of mice infected with LCMV. The pattern of chemokine gene expression in LCM may profoundly influence the characteristic phenotype and response of leukocytes in the brain and contribute to the immunopathogenesis of this fatal CNS infection.