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Prevention of oncornavirus-induced sarcomas in cats by treatment with antiviral antibodies

Abstract

IN mice, infections with leukaemogenic viruses, as well as subsequent development of disease, can be permanently suppressed by treatment with antibodies specific for the major glycoprotein (gp71) of Friend murine leukaemia virus (MuLV Friend)1,2. Similar protocols using antibodies to feline leukaemia virus (FeLV) result in elimination of FeLV infection in 6-month-old kittens. Furthermore, FeLV-infected kittens became non-viremic after treatment with antibodies to the murine virion glycoprotein3. This finding indicates that the interspecies portions of C-type virus glycoproteins can be suitable targets for immunotherapeutic regimens. It was of interest to extend the studies with leukaemia viruses to agents which induce other classes of neoplasms. We describe here a study of the effect of antibody therapy on infections in cats with feline sarcoma virus (FeSV). Our preliminary results indicate that antibody therapy can be effectively applied for prevention of virusinduced solid tumours. Moreover, this tumour model may be more attractive and amenable to study than virusinduced leukaemia.

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DE NORONHA, F., BAGGS, R., SCHÄFER, W. et al. Prevention of oncornavirus-induced sarcomas in cats by treatment with antiviral antibodies. Nature 267, 54–56 (1977). https://doi.org/10.1038/267054a0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/267054a0

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