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The Oncogenic Effects of Nontransforming Viruses from Avian Myeloblastosis Virus¹

Virus Research Laboratory, Veterans Administration Hospital, Gainesville, Florida 32601

Standard avian myeloblastosis virus (AMV), BAI strain A, causes myeloblastosis, osteopetrosis, lymphoid leukosis, and nephroblastoma in chickens. In this investigation, several leukosis viruses of subgroups A and B were isolated from standard AMV and characterized. A subgroup A virus derived from an AMV-induced lymphoma of a Japanese quail was isolated, and it induced a high incidence of osteopetrosis when injected intravenously into eleven-day-old chick embryos. A subgroup B virus was obtained which also induced a high incidence of osteopetrosis in chickens. These results indicate that viruses from two subgroups can induce osteopetrosis. Another strain derived from a quail rhabdomyosarcoma caused a high incidence of lymphoid leukosis. This strain also induced a low incidence of nephroblastoma and osteopetrosis. A subgroup A strain of standard AMV was obtained without passage through the Japanese quail which had an oncogenic spectrum consisting of osteopetrosis, nephroblastoma, and lymphoid leukosis.

Leukemia was never observed in any of the birds injected with the virus strains derived from standard AMV. None of the viral isolates induced the malignant transformation of hematopoietic tissue in vitro.

All of the strains derived from quail tumors were of the A subgroup of avian leukosis viruses. All subgroup A isolates demonstrated immunologic cross-reactivity. The subgroup B isolates demonstrated similar cross-reactivity but did not cross-react with any of the subgroup A viruses.

The results of this study indicate that the oncogenic role of nontransforming viruses present in standard AMV is to induce osteopetrosis, nephroblastoma, and lymphoid leukosis.

¹ Supported by USPHS Research Grant No. CA 10967 from the National Cancer Institute. Taken in part from a thesis submitted by Ralph E. Smith in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Doctor of Philosophy degree, Department of Microbiology, University of Colorado Medical Center, Denver, Colorado 80220.

² Supported by a training grant administered by the Department of Microbiology, University of Colorado Medical Center. Present address: Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina 27706.

Received 11/ 1/68. Accepted 3/13/69.