582 EXPERIMENT STATION RECORD. [Vol. 37 



rabbit serum which killed guinea pigs rapidly caused death with thrombi in 

 the heart and enlarged vessels. 



IX. Specific anaphylactic Shock, F. G. Novy and P. H. DeKruif (pp. 776- 

 832). — It is noted that the rat is an invaluable agent in the study of anaphy- 

 laxis. Nonspecific anaphylactic shock was induced in sensitized rats by the 

 injection of distilled water in amounts which had no effect on the normal rat. 

 Salt solution in like doses was tolerated with practically no effect. The specifi- 

 cally sensitized guinea pig was found not to be more susceptible to distilled 

 water than the normal animal. 



" The relative behavior of the rat and guinea pig to distilled water is par- 

 alleled in the relative ease with which tlie serum of the former, as compared 

 with that of the latter, is toxlfied by agar. Normal guinea pigs on rapid injec- 

 tion of very large doses of saline, and especially of distilled water, respond with 

 shock effects. ... A mixture of distilled water and sensitized rat serum is 

 rapidly toxified at 37° C, the speed increasing with the dilution. The dose 

 containing 1 cc. serum equivalent, incubated for 5 minutes, is fatally toxic." 

 A mixture of distilled water and serum of the rat sensitized to horse seruni 

 was likewise rapidly toxified at 37°. 



" The speed of poison production in normal serum or in sensitized serum Is 

 the same as that which has been demonstrated for agar, trypanosomes. peptone, 

 etc. The in vivo production of anaphylatoxin in specific shock, and its pro- 

 duction, in vitro, in mixtures of sen.sitized sera and antigen or distilletl water, 

 is therefore an accomplished fact. The results contraindicate the theories of 

 adsorption and of proteolysis. The specific anaphylactic shock is the result of 

 anaphylatoxin production, in corpore. consequent upon the inducing action of 

 a body which is formed by the union, or otherwise, of antigen and its specific 

 antibody. It Is not necessary for this inducing body to exist as a visible 

 precipitate, since substances in solution are capable of giving rise to anaphyla- 

 toxin. The specificity of the reaction concerns the production of this inducing 

 substance, and not that of the poison ; and further, the antigen is in no wl.se 

 the source of the annphylatoxin which is brought into being in shock." 



X. Anaphjilntorin and amino nitrogen, P. H. DeKruif and W. M. German 

 (pp. 833-854). — No relationship between serum autolysis and anaphylatoxin 

 production was observed when the method of Van Slyke for the determination 

 of alipliatic amino nitrogen was u.setl. 



" Rat and guinea pig .sera, toxified rapidly by the addition of 5 per cent agnr- 

 hydrogel, show a marked decrease in amino nitrogen as compared with controls 

 from the .same pool of serum. This decrea.se takes place at once upon addition 

 of agar to serum. After this preliminary drop in amino nitrogen a very grad- 

 ual rise to a value not exceeding that of the control may take place. Maximal 

 toxicity appears before this increase begins to be noticeable. The cause of this 

 drop in amino nitrogen in serum treated with agar is not known, but is prob- 

 ably to be referred to adsorption of amino acid by the agar. Attempts to 

 recover this supposedly adsorbed amino acid have failed. 



"A similar drop in amino nitrogen along with a marked increase In toxicity 

 is to be observed in the case of rat serum incubatetl with inulin. Guinea pig 

 serum treated in a like manner shows a slight increase in amino acids, which, 

 however, does not keep pace with the increase in toxicity. Rat serum behaves 

 peculiarly when diluted with distilled water. Sensitive rat serum shows an 

 increase, normal rat serum a decrease in amino nitrogen when Incubated with 

 six volumes of distilled water. Despite this difference, both become toxic." 



The most potent anaphylatoxin was produced by mixing inulin in the propor- 

 tion of 1 to 10 with normal rat serum. 



