%0 Journal Article %A Pilch, D. J. F. %A Planterose, D. N. %T Effects on Friend Disease of Double-stranded RNA of Fungal Origin %D 1971 %J Journal of General Virology, %V 10 %N 2 %P 155-162 %@ 1465-2099 %R https://doi.org/10.1099/0022-1317-10-2-155 %I Microbiology Society, %X SUMMARY This paper reports the effects of treatment with double-stranded RNA of Friend disease, a virus-induced murine leukaemia. The salient feature of the disease is a progressive increase in spleen size; death normally results from rupture of the spleen. It was found that the effect of treatment with double-stranded RNA was closely related to the time of treatment relative to infection. Treatment before or in the early stages of infection increased the severity of the disease, but treatment 5 days after infection led to a profound reduction in the severity of the disease, judged by a pronounced reduction or abolition of splenomegaly. Histological examination of this reversal of splenomegaly showed reduction of the Friend cell infiltration and a return to a more normal spleen architecture. Mice in which remissions have been produced have remained free of evidence of splenomegaly for several weeks. The nature of this therapeutic effect is unknown. %U https://www.microbiologyresearch.org/content/journal/jgv/10.1099/0022-1317-10-2-155