Study of thymic factors. II. Failure of thymosin to alter the natural history of nzb and nzb/nzw mice

The effects of daily injections of thymosin, bovine fraction V, on the natural history of NZB and NZB/NZW F₁ mice were investigated. With the use of several dose schedules, no significant differences were discovered in treated versus control groups when survival, autoantibodies, and mitogen responsiveness were compared. These results provide further evidence that thymosin may have little or no role in the treatment of the autoimmune disease of New Zealand mice. More encouraging research in thymic extracts and their measurement is necessary before clinical trials in SLE are considered.