ZOOLOGY AND BOTANY, MICROSCOPY, ETC. 89 



Schizophy ta. 

 Schizomycetes. 



Experimental Tuberculosis in Salt-water Fish.* — L. v. Betegh 

 contributes a further instalment of his studies upon tuberculosis among 

 cold-blooded animals. Sea-fish of the genera Crenilabrm, Fa/jeUus, and 

 Miu/il were inoculated with strains of tubercle bacilli obtained from the 

 tortoise and the slow-worm. Those which survived for periods of about 

 two months were killed, and pathological investigation showed the 

 presence of tuberculous lesions associated with organisms of the acid-fast 

 type as well as non-acid-fast sporing types. The authoi-, by his investi- 

 gations, has proved that these reptilian strains of tubercle possess the 

 same pathogenicity as the fish- tubercle bacilli. 



Giant Flagella.f — G. Rocchi gives an account of his observations 

 of appearances observed in some preparations of Bacillus perfringens and 

 other organisms. First in direct preparations from the lesion, and 

 later in hanging drops made from cultures, he observed a few non- 

 motile spiriUiform shapes, which suggested the presence of contami- 

 nations. These appear, however, to consist of numbers of massed 

 flagella which have become free from the bacterial bodies. Reference 

 is made to the work of Novy and others upon these manifestations. In 

 certain cultures of B. putrifims, " giants " of this type were observed, 

 which varied in length between 15 and 22 /a ; they showed 5-7 undula- 

 tions. They take Giemsa staining badly, and when treated by some 

 flagella-staining method, exhibit unbroken contour and no straying 

 processes. 



Bacterium antityphosum.J — E- Almquist, after passing certain 

 cultures of BaciUus typhosus through a Berkefeld filter, has found in 

 the filtrate minute granules which did not exhibit any growth at body 

 temperature or upon ordinary media, but grow well at room temperature 

 or even at 10" C. upon lactose or lactate agar, forming a thick pale 

 yellow growth. This organism was not pathogenic for rabbits or guinea- 

 pigs. No genetic relationship with the typhoid bacillus has been demon- 

 strated. By intravenous inoculation into rabbits, a serum was obtained 

 which agglutinated not only the organism itself, l)ut also typhoid 

 bacilli, in high dilutions. Pfeiffer's reaction was also observed. This 

 organism has, therefore, received the name Bacterium antityphosum. 



Denitrifying Bacteria in Sea-water. § — G. H. Drew has investi- 

 gated the action of denitrifying bacteria in tropical and temperate seas, 

 with a view to ascertaining whether the limited growth of phytoplankton 

 in the former may be due to the relative deficiency in tropical seas of 

 essential nitrogenous compounds. Samples of water, superficial and 

 deep, were collected off Ushant, off Jamaica, and in the Straits of 

 Florida. Cultivations were made upon peptone sea-water agar, potassium 

 malate or calcium malate sea-water agar. Nitrite formation was tested 



* Centralbl. Bakt., l<e Abt. Orig., Iviii. (1911) pp. 495-504. 



t Centralbl. Bakt., Ite Abt. Orig., Ix. (1911) pp. 174-5. 



i Centralbl. Bakt., Ite Abt. Orig., Ix. (1911) pp. 167-74. 



§ Journ. Marine Biol. Assoc, ix. (1911) pp. 142-55. 



