Anemic stress as a trigger of myelogenous leukemia in rats rendered leukemia-prone by x-ray.
All of the 128 Sprague-Dawley female rats bled two-thirds of the blood volume at 1, 2, or 3 months after irradiation (50, 170, or 350 roentgens) succumbed to leukemia by 16 months after bleeding. Some nonbled irradiated rats developed leukemia possibly as a result of triggering by a radiation-induced anemia. The threshold leukemogenic x-ray dose is probably below 25 roentgens. Elevated levels of basophils, neutrophils containing the "pseudo-Pelger" type nuclear anomaly, and myeloblasts exhibiting Auer rods seen in these animals were generally not found in earlier models of rat myelogenous leukemia.
D000740:Anemia / Q000150:complications* / Q000209:etiology; D000818:Animals; D001491:Basophils; D001772:Blood Cell Count; D001815:Bloodletting; D001854:Bone Marrow Cells; D005260:Female; D015470:Leukemia, Myeloid, Acute / Q000209:etiology*; D007953:Leukemia, Radiation-Induced; D007958:Leukocyte Count; D011829:Radiation Dosage; D011833:Radiation Injuries, Experimental / Q000150:complications*; D051381:Rats; D013997:Time Factors