Isolation of a Cytopathogenic Agent from Human Adenoids Undergoing Spontaneous Degeneration in Tissue Culture

TLDR

The study proposes that the filterable, bacteriologically non‑cultivable agent isolated from degenerating adenoids is a virus or rickettsial organism, tentatively named the adenoid degeneration agent (A.D. agent), and aims to investigate its relationship to adenoids and potential role in upper respiratory infections. Repeated isolation of an unidentified, possibly new, cytopathogenic agent from degenerating human adenoids shows that it originates from adenoid tissue rather than the culture media, and that only degenerating cultures yield the agent.

Abstract

Summary1. From the present evidence it appears that an unidentified, possibly new, tissue culture cytopathogenic agent has been isolated repeatedly from human adenoids undergoing spontaneous degeneration in tissue culture. The filter ability and the inability to cultivate the agent on bacteriological media and to demonstrate organisms in stained tissue culture preparations would indicate that the agent belongs to the group of viruses or rickettsial It is tentatively proposed to designate the agent as the “adenoid degeneration agent”, abbreviated as “A.D. agent”. 2. That the agent is derived from the adenoid tissue rather than from the nutrient media is indicated by the fact that some adenoids and all human embryonic tissues cultivated in the identical media and at the same time have not undergone degeneration, although they are susceptible to infection with the agent; also, repeated attempts to isolate the agents from adenoid cultures not demonstrating degeneration have been uniformly unsuccessful. 3. Further investigation is in progress to determine the relation of the agent to the adenoids and to study their possible role in human disease; particularly upper respiratory infections.