Lymphoma-associated ulcerative bowel disease in the hamster (Mesocricetus auratus) induced by an unusual agent

In a hamster model of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma which closely parallels the disease in man, and which is induced by an unusual agent(s), a diarrheal bowel disease was a major cause of mortality. This study was initiated to characterize this bowel disease and its relation to lymphoma induction and to natural diseases seen in the hamster. The studies showed that the bowel disease was an ulcerative process and was distinct from natural diseases. The incidence of the bowel disease correlated directly with that of the lymphoma in repeated epizootics, in titration studies, and in agent inactivation tests. The ulcerative bowel lesions were seen at the same stage of the disease as acute and chronic inflammatory infiltrates with necrosis in the thymus and mesenteric lymph nodes. Since necrosis in the gut-associated lymphoid tissue can lead to perforation and sepsis, these bowel lesions were lethal, whereas similar necrosis in other lymphoid tissues (thymus and lymph nodes) could be clinically undetectable. Similar lesions have been reported in man. The ulcerative bowel disease was a reliable early clinical marker for exposure of hamsters to this lymphomagenic agent(s).