Thrombocytopenia Induced by the Friend Leukemia Virus2

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Abstract
The Friend leukemia virus caused significant thrombocytopenia in Swiss-Webster female mice 2 days after inoculation. The inoculum was infected splenic homogenate or whole blood. Thrombocytopenia was demonstrated in serially and nonserially bled mice. With infection, the platelet count fell progressively. Thrombocytopenia also developed in two inbred strains of mice—CF1 and C57BL There was no apparent relationship between thrombocytopenia and spleen weight. Mice dying early in infection with a hemorrhagic diathesis had severe thrombocytopenia, with platelet counts of less than 25,000 per mm3. Friend leukemia virus grown in tissue culture caused thrombocytopenia before splenic enlargement. Thrombocytopenia was not demonstrated in mice inoculated with normal spleen suspension, normal whole blood, LDH virus, and Friend-infected whole blood heated at 56° C for 30 minutes. The study demonstrates that thrombocytopenia is a major factor in the pathophysiology of Friend leukemia virus disease.