554 THE BACTERIOPHAGE 



tion. They have been able to find the phage only in a small percentage of cases/ 

 and in the cases where phage was present it was often transitory and had no effect 

 on the severity or the outcome of the disease.^ In explanation of this discrepancy, 

 Ciuca and Manoliu^ call attention to the possibility that consistent findings of phage 

 in convalescents claimed by D'Herelle, Hauduroy, and others may have been due to 

 the fact that fecal filtrates generally display inhibiting effect on the growth of bac- 

 teria. This inhibition is not transmissible in series, however, and should not be con- 

 fused with the effect of phage. 



As regards the effect of therapeutic administration of bacteriophage, the review 

 of clinical reports undoubtedly supports D'Herelle's conclusion that in dysentery 

 and in staphylococcus infections the results seem very encouraging. However, it is 

 impossible to say on the basis of this clinical material alone whether the improvement 

 observed by numerous observers was due directly to the effect of bacteriophage or 

 to other causes.'' Only a few workers attempted to control the effect of administra- 

 tion of bacteriophages by using bacterial autolysates in their place. In the case of 

 staphylococcus infections, for instance, equally good results are obtained by the use 

 of Besredka's "antivirus.''^ In instances where these control experiments have been 

 instituted,^ it was found that administration of filtrates of cultures of bacteria (free 

 from bacteriophage) has caused improvement in cases of dysentery and staphylo- 

 coccus infections comparable to those obtained through administration of bacterio- 

 phage. ^ Similar conclusions can be drawn also from the observation of Brouardel who 

 reported that the administration of typhoid phage caused improvement in cases of 

 septicemia due to the Friedlander bacillus.* 



That the improvement of patients under phage therapy is not due to the 

 specific action of bacteriophage is further indicated by almost universal failure 

 to influence the course of experimental infection.' This is particularly significant be- 



' Larkum, N. W.: /. Bad., 12, 203 and 225. 1926; Ciuca, M., and Manoliu, E.: Compt. rend. 

 Soc. de bioL, 91, 1225. 1924; Schumm, E., and Cooke, R. A.: /. Infect. Dis., 39, 424. 1926. 



^ Gj0rup, E.: Acta med. Scandinav., Suppl. 7, p. 365. 1924; Manoliu, E.: Compt. rend. Soc. de 

 biol., 92, 724. 1925; Wagemans, J.: op. cit., 28, 159. 1923; Sickenga, F. N.: Nederl. Maandschr. v. 

 Geneesk., 13, 141. 1925; Cowie, D. M.: Ann. Clin. Med., 5, 57. 1926. In collaboration with Drs. Korb 

 and Muckenfuss the writer had the opportunity of examining for presence of phage over two hundred 

 mice infected b}- ingestion of B. pestis caviae. The frequency as well as type of phages recovered dur- 

 ing these examinations was approximately the same in the animals surviving the infection and in 

 those succumbing to it. Most frequently the phages recovered were active only against B. dysenteriae; 

 next in frequency B. cntcritidis Gaertner; and the least frequently those active against the infecting 

 organism. 



3 Ciuca, M., and Manoliu, E.: loc. cit. ^ Zdansky, E.: loc. cit.; Cowie, D. M.: he. cit. 



5 Besredka, A.: Senchenbekdmpfung, 4, 21. 1927. 



'' Gratia, A., and Doyle, D.: Compt. rend. Soc. de biol., 93, 452. 1925. 



7 Munter, H., and Boenheim, C: Ztschr.f. Kindcrh., 39, 3S8. 1925; Bazy, L.: Compt. rend. Soc. 

 de biol., 92, 4S5. 1925. 



* Brouardel, M.: Bull. Acad, de med. de Paris, 96, 240. 1926. 



9 Bronfenbrenner, J., and Korb, C: loc. cit.; Gratia, A., and Doyle, D.: loc. cit.; Seiffert, W.: 

 Ztschr.f. Immunilatsforsch. 11. exper. Therap., Orig., 38, 350. 1923; Nobechi, K.: Ccunpt. rend. Soc. 

 de biol., 95, 1252. 1926; Levy, M. M.: ibid., 93, 395. 1925; ibid., p. 82. 1925; Clark, P. F , and A. S.: 

 Proc. Soc. Exper. Biol. b° Med., 24, 635. 1927; Topley, W W. C, Wilson, J., and Lewis, E. R.: /. 

 Hyg., 24, 17. 1925; Topley, W. W. C, and Wilson, J.: ibid., p. 295. 1925. 



