The Role of the Infected Egg in the Transmission of Visceral Lymphomatosis

Abstract

SINCE the original suggestion of Doyle (1929), many investigators have presented circumstantial evidence that the infectious agent or agents of lymphomatosis were transmitted from parent to offspring via the egg while others obtained results which led them to conclude that egg transmission did not occur, or if it did, it was of little or no consequence. For a review of this literature see Cole (1949) and Cottral et al. (1954). It has been suggested (Waters, 1954b; Cottral et al., 1954; and Burmester et al., 1955) that a part of these apparent differences in results and in interpretation may be attributable to the variation in the predominate form of lymphomatosis that occurred in the different flocks. The primary basis for this suggestion was the report of Hutt and Cole (1953) that in their experimental flock over three-quarters of all birds that died of lymphomatosis had the neural form of the …