582 EXPERIMENT STATION EECORD. 



on autopsy was found to have lesions in the abdominal viscera, although the 

 bacilli could not be isolated from the lesions. Another calf, which was injected 

 with a suspension of tubercular lymph nodes and tested five months later with 

 avian tuberculin, gave a decided reaction, but no lesions were found on autopsy. 



A fourth calf, which was fed with the macerated organs of tubercular hens, 

 gave positiTe tests to both avian and bovine tuberculin. Fifteen days elapsed 

 between the application of the tuberculins. The results support the view " that 

 avian tuberculin will not immunize an animal against the anaphylactic action 

 of orduiary tuberculin or vice versa. The response to this test with ordinary 

 tuberculin weakens the supposition advanced previously that a difference exists 

 in the avian and ordinary tuberculins. This calf was killed and examined post- 

 mortem with the following findings: Liver presented many yellowish, white 

 spots J cm. in diameter, smears from which showed presence of tubercle 

 bacilli. Hepatic lymph glands were normal, however. Mesenteric lymph nodes 

 opposite union of jejunum and ileum enlarged and tubercular. No lesions were 

 found in the intestines." 



Agglutination tests with normal and diseased fowls are reported upon, and the 

 results, while encouraging, do not warrant the drawing of positive conclu- 

 sions because the number of birds examined was too few. The possibility of 

 using the precipitin, agglutination, and complement-fixation tests as diagnostic 

 agents is em jiha sized. 



Avian tuberculosis, L. Van Es and A. F. Schalk (North Dakota 8ta. Bui. 

 lOS {1914), PP- 3-94, pis. 3, fig. 1). — This discusses the history, geographic 

 distribution, economic importance, etiology, modes of transmission and patho- 

 genesis, lesions, symptoms, and diagnosis of avian tuberculosis, with special 

 reference to its occurrence in fowls, and reports experiments in applying the 

 tuberculin test to the diagnosis of tuberculosis in fowls. An extensive bibliog- 

 raphy is appended. 



" Owing to the negative results obtained by previous investigators when the 

 subcutaneous, ophthalmic, or cutaneous method of application was used, the 

 writers experimented almost exclusively with the intracutaneous method of 

 tuberculin application introduced by Moussu and Mantoux [E. S. R., 21, p. 

 582]." A portion of the experiments (320 birds) has been reported from 

 another source (E. S. II.. 30, p. 381), but in all 601 tests were made. The 

 number of fowls given autopsy was 277, the number of birds found to have 

 lesions was 125, and those showing typical reactions were 90 in number. The 

 reacting fowls with lesions were 88, or 97.77 per cent. The number of non- 

 reacting fowls was 130, of which 120, or 91.53 per cent, were without lesions. 

 There were 57 fowls with doubtful reactions, and of these 27, or 47.36 per cent, 

 had lesions. In many of the cases the lesions were confined to a single organ. 



A tuberculin reaction in chickens is considered an almost certain indication 

 of tuberculous infection. " While nothing less than a great amount of prac- 

 tical experience obtained under all kinds of conditions will be necessni-y to 

 establish the usefulness of the intradermal tuberculin test in the eradication 

 of tuberculosis from farm poultry, the results obtained in experiments ai'e 

 strongly suggestive of its value." 



As tuberculosis is considered a chronic, essentially progressive disease, and 

 the treatment of avian tuberculosis is impracticable, prophylaxis as a means of 

 eradication of tuberculosis from a flock is suggested. " The owners of a healthy 

 flock should be careful in the introduction of new stock, and when the latter 

 is procured from unknown or questionable sources, it would be advisable to 

 subject the fowls to a tuberculin test before they are permitted to mingle with 

 the healthy birds." 



