ZOOLOGY AND BOTANY, MICROSCOPY, ETC. 247 



Lichens. 

 (By A. LORBAiN Smith, F.L.S.) 



Anglesea Lichens.* — W. G. Travis records the discovery of two 

 crustaceous lichens at Newborough in Anglesea. They were found by 

 Wheldon and Travis on the Lancashire sand-dunes, and described as 

 Arthopyrenia areniseda and Bacidia latehricola. Travis examined the 

 same type of locality at Newborough and was rewarded by finding the 

 two Uchens. 



Scbiz op hy ta. 

 Schizomycetes. 



Bacillus Sporogenes in War Wounds.f — M. Weinberg and P. 

 Seguin describe an organism {Bacillus sporogenes) which they have isolated 

 on thirty-four occasions from one hundred and twenty-six cases of gas 

 gangrene infection. Choukevitch also has found this organism three 

 times in eight cases of gas gangrene, and in seven out of nine cases of 

 putrid wounds without gas. B. sporogenes resembles B. cedematis maligni 

 (Vibrion septique) in many respects, but may be readily distinguished 

 by means of serological tests. A V. septique agglutinating serum of a 

 titre of TTTTT^ '^ill ^ot agglutinate strains of B. sporogenes even at so 

 high a titre as yV? although a good agglutinating rabbit serum with a 

 titre of s^-Q may be obtained for B. sporogenes after a month's immuni- 

 zation with the homologous organism. The addition of antitoxic anti- 

 vibrion septique serum to a pathogenic dose of B. sporogenes has no 

 inhibitory effect on the development of the characteristic lesions in the 

 guinea-pig, and supports the conclusion that the two species are distinct. 

 Filtrates of cultures of B. sporogenes were found, in vitro, to destroy 

 the toxic effect of B. ORdematiens, which probably explains why Conradi, 

 Bieling and other German workers have pronounced the latter organism 

 to be non-toxic. They were doubtless dealing with mixed infections. 



. Bacterial Etiology of Poison-Oak Dermatitis. | — L. C, Frost 

 reports seven cases of dermatitis due to Rhus diversiloba, or "poison 

 oak," in which certain bacteria found on the leaves of the plant led him 

 to believe that the dermatitis was caused by a definite organism and not 

 by the irritation of the chemical poison secreted by the leaves. The 

 following points in the etiology of the condition tend to bear out this 

 contention — (1) there is an incubation period averaging four and a-half 

 days ; (2) complete immunity is shown by some individuals, which 

 (3) may be lowered by a lowering of physical condition, change of 

 climate, etc. ; (4) exposure may be strictly hmited to proximity to the 



* Journ. Bot., Iv. (1917) pp. 54-5. 



t^C.R. Soc. Biol. Paris., Ixxix. (1916) pp. 1028-31. 



X Med. Record., Ixxx. (1916) pp. 1121-3. 



