A Plasma Lactic Dehydrogenase-Elevating Virus Associated with Scrapie-Infected Mice

Mice in our scrapie-infected colony were found to have high levels of plasma lactic dehydrogenase activity. The cause of this appears to be contamination of mouse-passaged scrapie material with a plasma lactic dehydrogenase-elevating virus, similar to that normally found as a contaminant of transplantable mouse neoplasia. Mice inoculated with the Compton strain of scrapie virus or with sheep scrapie virus had normal plasma lactic dehydrogenase activities.