Reconstitution of the W/Wv stem cell differentiation defect by infection with Rauscher leukemia virus

Hematopoietic stem cells of W/Wv mice failed to produce macroscopically visible hematopoietic spleen colonies in irradiated recipient mice. Infection of W/Wv mice of the spleen focus-forming virus-susceptible genotype Fv-2ss (DBA/2) or Fv-2rs (BD2F1) with Rauscher leukemia virus (RLV) restored the spleen colony-forming capacity of the stem cells. The resulting spleen colonies had normal size and cellularity; the frequency of and ratio between granulocyte-macrophage and erythroid progenitor cells were also normal, without excessive production of erythroid cells. The frequency of spleen colony-forming units (CFU-S) appeared to be strongly reduced in W/Wv mice. The seeding fraction of RLV-infected W/Wv stem cells in the recipient spleens did not differ from that of uninfected or RLV-infected +/+ stem cells. At equivalent numbers of CFU-S, spleen suspensions of RLV-infected W/Wv mice were equally effective as +/+ control suspensions in protecting irradiated mice from death due to bone marrow failure. Thus the number of CFU-S observed appeared to be predictive for the number of W/Wv cells required for effective radioprotection. In irradiated W/Wv mice that received transplants of RLV-infected W/Wv cells, circulating erythrocyte numbers approached those of control mice; the erythrocytes were of normal size, in contrast to the macrocytic red cells of untreated W/Wv mice. The reduced frequency of CFU-S in RLV-infected W/Wv mice can be readily explained by a reduced self-replicating capacity, attributable to the W/Wv genes, which was not reconstituted by infection with RLV. The data indicate a direct involvement of pluripotent stem cells upon infection with RLV.