28 MASS. EXPERIMENT STATION BULLETIN 370 



be refractory to inoculation with the leukosis agent, and cite Poll to the effect 

 that the guinea fowl is more closely related to the domestic chicken than either 

 the pheasant or peacock . Stubbs and Furth (192) found the guinea fowl as well 

 as pigeons to be resistant to infection with their agent and cite Ellermann and 

 Bang as reporting that guinea fowl, doves, and turkeys could not be infected. 

 Stubbs (189) later described the successful transmission of leukosis to a hybrid 

 bird (the offspring of a male pheasant and a bantam hen) in which typical leukosis 

 brought about death in 84 days. The blood from this hybrid bird was capable 

 of infecting chickens but was without effect when injected into pheasant. Wak- 

 amatsu (209) reported canaries resistant to infection. Geese, ducks, and turkeys 

 inoculated with his Strain III of leukosis agent remained healthy, according to 

 Olson (155). Schaaf (175) inoculated ducks, geese, pigeons, parrots, and canaries 

 without inducing the disease in them. Five guinea fowl were given repeated intra- 

 venous inoculations of leukotic chicken blood with the result that three developed 

 a severe anemia after a period of 4, 5, and 14 weeks, respectively. He does not 

 state whether these experiments were conducted with strains of transmissible 

 leukosis isolated by himself or with those he had received from Jarmai and from 

 Engelbreth-Holm. Jarmai (99) states that waterfowl, sparrows, rabbits, mice, 

 and guinea pigs could not be infected with the disease. Recently Jarmai (101) has 

 reported that his strain of erythroblastic leukosis has developed the ability to 

 produce the disease in turkeys, guinea fowl, and pheasants. The disease as pro- 

 duced in these species of fowl was quite similar to that observed in the domestic 

 chicken. The inoculation of 13 turkeys with leukotic material produced leukosis 

 in 7. Three guinea fowl and two pheasants were inoculated with leukotic material 

 from chickens and all died with leukosis within 24 days. AH chickens receiving 

 material from either the guinea fowl or pheasants developed typical leukosis. 

 Of 31 chickens inoculated with material from the leukotic turkeys, only two 

 developed the disease and in both instances it was of a mild form. Successive 

 animal passage of the transmissible agent from these two chickens into other 

 chickens resulted in enhancement of its virulence and the production of more 

 severe leukosis. Jarmai believed that the transmissible agent was so modified by 

 its passage through the turkey that its virulence for chickens was decreased. 

 Recovery of the virulence was indicated after several successive passages in the 

 chicken. Jarmai (101) also records unsuccessful attempts to infect pigeons with 

 leukosis after the birds had undergone exposure to roentgen rays, damage to the 

 bone marrow, or had been given repeated inoculations. He was unable to produce 

 the disease in ducks, geese, a quail, a sparrow hawk, and a peacock. 



Morelli and Vercellone (141 b) report that the leukosis agent of Oberling and 

 Guerin produced a transient leukosis-like reaction in one of five pheasants. 

 Two other pheasants developed a temporary state of anemia. They regard this 

 as an indication of the ability of the leukosis agent to cause disease in pheasants. 



Greppin (91), working with Oberling and Guerin's strain of the leukosis agent, 

 reported the production of fatal leukosis in two of three guinea fowl and one 

 of three turkeys inoculated intracerebrally. Two guinea fowl and two turkeys 

 inoculated intravenously remained negative. Pigeons, geese, and ducks were 

 found to be resistant to either mode of inoculation. 



The report of Schirrmeister (176), in which he described the transmission 

 to a chicken of a neoplastic-like process found in a turkey, should be accepted 

 with reservations. The reaction in the turkey involved the intestine and mesentery 

 and consisted principally of mononuclear cells. An emulsion prepared from this 

 tissue was injected into the subcutis of a chicken, a guinea pig, and a rabbit. 

 A transient leukocytosis was observed in all animals and in the chicken reappeared 



