84 SUMMARY OF CURRENT RESEARCHES RELATING TO 



grown 48 hours at :>7° C. the bacillus forms small, round, raised,, 

 isolated colonies of about 1 mm. diameter, opaque, and greyish in 

 colour, with a glazed, shiny surface. In subcultures the organism 

 grows more luxuriantly. It retains its vitality and virulence a con- 

 siderable time, but in the condensation-water, where it forms long 

 chains, it does not remain living very long. The only other medium 

 in which it will grow is fluid serum from rabbits' blood, in which it 

 forms turbid flocculi. The authors succeeded in three cases in pro- 

 ducing typical soft sores by inoculating the surface of the peritoneum 

 with isolated colonies of the bacillus. 



G-onococcus in the General Circulation.* — TV. B. Johnson records a 

 case of endocarditis and general septicsemia due to the presence of the 

 gonococcus, in which he was able to demonstrate the presence of the 

 specific organism in the circulating blood. 



Cultivations were made from the circulating blood on five separate 

 days ; at the fifth attempt, 24 hours before death, pure growths of the 

 gonococcus were obtained, and the author points out that it is neither 

 necessary to use a large amount of blood to obtain cultivations from 

 these cases, nor to greatly dilute the blood with the medium used, nor 

 to employ any specially prepared medium, for the bactericidal power of 

 the blood appears to have but very slight effect in retarding the growth 

 of the gonococcus. Moreover, he found that it was more advantageous 

 to mix the blood with melted agar and at once pour plates, than to use 

 fluid media, where the oxygen supply is more restricted. 



Agriculture and Bacteria.f — H. W. Wiley states that the nitrogen 

 necessary for the nutrition of plants and crops is derived from organic 

 compounds previously broken up by the bacteria present in the soil. In 

 this process three stages are distinguishable, each being identified with a 

 specific species of organism. First, the organic matter is broken up into> 

 ammonia or its compounds by the activity of the B. mycoides ; next, 

 the ammonia is converted into nitrous acid or its compounds by the 

 nitrous bacteria, of which, so far, only one species has been isolated, the 

 nitroso-monas ; and finally, the nitrous acid is converted into nitric acid 

 or its compounds by the nitro-bacteria ; both these last bacteria were 

 originally isolated by TVinogradsky. A second type of nitrification, in 

 which the atmospheric nitrogen is utilised, is effected by parasitic 

 organisms existing in the tubercle on the roots of certain Legurninosse. 

 Cultures of these organisms are prepared commercially and sold under 

 the name nitragin. Another species (the Alinite bacteria), stated to 

 possess similar properties, is likewise prepared commercially. 



Mycetozoa. 



Culture of Myxomycetes.J— Pinoy gives the results of his attempts 

 to make pure cultures of Ghondrioderma difforme and Didymium 

 effusum. He finds that they can be grown, if a bacterium be cultivated 

 along with them. This Bacillus he determines to be identical with B.. 

 luteus of Fliigge. 



* Bull. Johns Hopkins Hosp., xiii. (1902) pp. 236-41. 



+ Journ. Franklin Inst, cliv. (1902) pp. 81-91 and 161-9 (1 pi.). 



J Bull.. Soc. Myc, xviii. (1902) pp. 288-90. 



