Attempt to immunize guinea pigs against L2C leukemia with leukemia cells inactivated by gamma irradiation

In previous studies, intradermal inoculation of small doses of L2C leukemic cell suspensions into strain 2 guinea pigs induced immunity against challenging reinoculation with leukemic cells; however, 50% of the guinea pigs developed leukemia in the course of immunization. We have now attempted to induce immunity by inoculation of L2C leukemic cells inactivated by in vitro gamma irradiation ranging from 750 to 8000 rads (1 rad = 0.01 gray). In preliminary experiments, irradiation with 750 to 2750 rads had no significant effect on leukemogenic potency of leukemic cells; however, doses exceeding 3000 rads inactivated the leukemogenic potency of L2C cells. Eighty-nine guinea pigs that survived intradermal, subcutaneous, or intraperitoneal inoculations with irradiated (1000-8000 rads) L2C cells were subsequently challenged by reinoculation with nonirradiated leukemic cells, and 83 of them (93%) developed leukemia. L2C leukemic cells contain spherical particles, about 103 nm in diameter; it is reasonable to assume that these particles represent the causative virus responsible for the development of L2C leukemia. Inactivation of leukemogenic potency of L2C leukemic cells by gamma irradiation in vitro does not necessarily imply that the virus particles consistently present in these cells were also inactivated. In previous experiments carried out on mouse leukemia, doses exceeding 1,000,000 rads were needed in order to inactivate the mouse leukemia virus in vitro.