Corticosteroid-treated rats develop an overt infection with Pneumocystis and provide a ready source of organisms for study. A system of cortisonizing animals by the oral route was developed, utilizing daily provision of 200 ml of water containing 0.2 mg of dexamethasone and 100 mg of tetracycline to pairs of 200-g rats. The intensity of infection with Pneumocystis was related to length of time on treatment. Overt infection with Pneumocystis did not develop in a strain of pathogen-free rats in barrier cages while on the corticosteroid treatment schedule. However, transmission of the organism to pathogen-free treated animals was accomplished on contact exposure to infected rats.
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Hendley et al. (1971) studied this question.