In Vivo Inhibition of Murine Leukemia and Sarcoma Viruses by the Heteropolyanion 5-Tungsto-2-antimoniate

Summary

The mineral heteropolyanion 5-tungsto-2-antimoniate (TA) protected mice against Friend- and plasma variant-induced leukemias. When it was given on the day of virus inoculation, we obtained either a complete protective effect with no detectable leukemia or a partial protection indicated by the reduced mean spleen weight (MSW), decrease in virus titers in the plasma and the spleen, and increase of the mean survival time. Mice were immunized against Friend leukemia virus with a simultaneous injection of virus and TA. When TA treatment started at day 3 or 7 after virus inoculation, in 2 of 4 experiments, the MSW was significantly reduced. TA also delayed the appearance of tumors in newborn mice inoculated with Moloney murine sarcoma virus. TA did not induce interferon and had no effect on a grafted leukemia. It had only an antivirus effect and its action did not require direct preliminary contact between virus and product.