A STUDY OF TOAD POISON. 



179 



TABLE IV. 

 BEHAVIOR OF DIFFERENT PHRYNOLYSINS TOWARD SHEEP BLOOD. 



ATTEMPTS AT REACTIVATING A PHRYNOLYSIN WHICH HAD BECOME 



INACTIVE AT 56 C. 



The investigations of Ehrlich and Morgenroth have shown that 

 the hsemolysins of the higher vertebrates are of complex constitu- 

 tion. They consist of two portions, the complement and the immune 

 body. By heating to 56 C. the complement is destroyed, while 

 the immune body remains intact. The immune body by itself can- 

 not exert any haemolytic action; a fitting complement must first 

 be added. 



It would be quite comprehensible for the phrynolysin likewise 

 to consist of two parts. Heating to 56 C. would destroy the com- 

 plement, while the thermostable interbody would be preserved. 

 I therefore attempted to reactivate the toxin which had become 

 inactive at 56 C. and tried the addition of a number of different 

 normal serum for this purpose, such as goat serum, sheep serum, 

 pigeon serum, horse serum, guinea-pig serum, and rabbit serum, 

 all without success, no solution taking place. Unfortunately, owing 

 to lack of material, I was unable to obtain 1 or 2 cc. of serum from 

 the fire-toad in order to employ this for reactivation. Experiments 

 with the normal sera of the higher vertebrates are not conclusive, 

 because the complement sought for may possibly be contained only 

 in the serum of the fire- toad. For the present therefore the ques- 

 tion as to the complex character of the phrynolysin must still be 

 kept open. 



DO NORMAL SERA CONTAIN ANTIBODIES AGAINST PHRYNOLYSIN? 



A number of normal sera, which had first been inactived at 56 C. 

 in order to avoid solution of the sheep blood added, were tested for 

 this purpose, e.g., pigeon serum, sheep serum, guinea-pig serum, 

 horse serum, rabbit serum, and goat serum. None of these sera, 



