Date of Award

4-1967

Document Type

Thesis - Restricted

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Department

Medical

First Advisor

Walter P. Blount

Second Advisor

Ross C. Kory

Third Advisor

Karl H. Mueller

Abstract

Runt disease is an experimental generalized autoimmune disease. It can be produced in laboratory animals with ease and predictability. The disease is produced by placing an immunologically competent graft on a host that can stimulate the reactivity of the graft but is unable to reject the graft. This results in destruction of the host by the graft in the same manner that homografted tissues are destroyed by competent hosts. The characteristic pathologic features are lack of growth, emaciation, anemia, and lymphoid atrophy (29).

The possibility of this occurring in humans has been emphasized in a recent article by Hathaway, et al. (17) in which immunologically deficient children we re given multiple £re sh blood transfusions. Two children were discussed and both developed changes similar to those seen in experimental runt disease.

The main emphasis on runt disease has been in the opportunity it affords to study the results of a generalized immunologic attack on an otherwise normal animal. The mechanisms of tissue destruction and the cells responsible for this have been investigated (29).

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