A basic immunoenzymatic test which detects early acute and progressive destructive processes in sheep by tissue-associated protein complex

Adult ewes were given 1·5 g cyclophosphamide intravenously, and 68 days later received an intrapulmonary inoculation of virus preparations isolated from a sheep bronchoalveolar carcinoma. The animals were under continuous inspection for a year after inoculation and the concentration of a tissue-associated protein complex (TAPC) was evaluated in serum samples. An average of approximately 97 to 120% increase in the serum TAPC concentration was found after the cyclophosphamide administration, after the virus inoculation and during the virus-induced tumour development. The increase in the TAPC concentration due to the drug and the virus injections was acute and self limiting, lasting approximately 70 and 92 days, respectively, beginning 2 h and approximately six days after the treatments, respectively. The TAPC increase, which marked the tumour growth, started 92 days after the virus inoculation and continued indefinitely until the termination of the experiment. A correlation between the stage of tumour development and increased serum TAPC concentration was found. The incubation period of sheep bronchoalveolar carcinoma, as determined by the TAPC serum concentration, lasted approximately 92 days from the virus inoculation.