Cancers Deriving From the Virus Papillomas of Wild Rabbits Under Natural Conditions

Abstract

The naturally occurring virus papillomas of western cottontail rabbits become malignant occasionally. The cancers derive from the papilloma cells, that is to say from elements already rendered neoplastic by the virus and still infected therewith. Papillomas produced with the virus in jack rabbits and snowshoe rabbits become cancerous in the same way but much more frequently, as is the case in domestic rabbits also. To all three species the virus is foreign. The character of the cancers of the wild rabbits is described and the relation of the virus to them discussed on the basis of experimental findings. The facts support the view that the cancers result from virus variation, this in many instances being but slight.

Epithelial Lesions Suggestive of a Condylomatous Origin Found Closely Associated with Invasive Bronchial Squamous Cell Carcinomas

“…thus substantiating the earlier ob servations made on the behavior of classical condyloma acuminatum [10,18,19,24,39], However, attempts to discover the viral particles in these lesions (condyloma acumi natum and epidermodysplasia verrucifor mis) after the malignant change has taken place have failed [8,14,27,40]. This does not, however, rule out the possibility that HPV plays a role in carcinogenesis, as has recently been pointed out [11], Indeed, the failure to detect the viral particles in these malignant lesions in man seems to be in agreement with the findings made in experi mental animal models of the papillomatous diseases, particularly the Shope rabbit pap illoma, in which case the malignant trans formation, too, is followed by disappear ance of the viral particles [11,13,38]. Ad ditional support to the concept that HPV has oncogenic potentialities has been pro vided by the recently accomplished propaga tion experiments [5], as well as the experi ments where the persistence of the DNA of HPV in infected human celt cultures was found to be identical to that of the DNA from oncogenic papova viruses [15], Would this concept of the oncogenicity of HPV be wanted to be provided with some additional evidence, sites other than the genital tract and the skin containing squa mous epithelium, i.e., oral cavity, esopha gus, urinary bladder and lung, should be sought with special reference to squamous carcinomas and concomitant viral lesions (warts and condylomas) [42].…”

Viral Diseases

“…Rabbit papillomatosis was initially considered a natural benign disease of Sylvilagus rabbits only; however, spontaneous outbreaks of papillomatosis in Oryctolagus cuniculus indicate that the disease has greater relevance (Hagen, 1966). Soon after discovery of the virus, it was also shown to cause malignant neoplasms histologically resembling squamous cell carcinomas (Kidd and Rous, 1940;Beard, 1934, 1935). This was the first recognition of an oncogenic virus in mammals.…”

Detection of Small Inflammatory and Metastatic Lymph Nodes in Rabbits by Sonography

“…The VX2 cell line 16 was donated by the Department of Radiology of Shanghai Jiaotong University Affiliated First People's Hospital and was originally obtained from the Chinese Academy of Sciences (Shanghai, China). Tumor cells were propagated by intramuscular passage of rabbits.…”