Accelerated clearance of exogenously administered erythropoietin by mice with Rauscher viral leukemia.

Both the endogenous plasma erythropoietin levels and the rate of plasma clearance of injected erythropoietin have been investigated in SJL/J mice that had been rendered leukemic by the injection of Rauscher virus. The results show an elevated level of endogenous erythropoietin coupled with an accelerated rate of erythropoietin clearance. These re sults are inconsistent with the hypothesis previously sug gested by other workers that erythropoietin production is impaired by Rauscher leukemia. As an alternative, it has been proposed that as a result of the leukemia both erythro poietin production and clearance are accelerated to such a degree that very little reserve production capacity remains to allow for additional hormone synthesis in response to the stimuli of extreme anemia or bleeding.