638 COMMUNICABLE DISEASES OF LABORATORY ANIMALS 



and is transmitted to man. Schiirmann' observed a localized parasitic invasion on 

 the right hand of an animal caretaker. The rat disease is easily cured with creosote 

 or flower-of-sulphur preparations, A few years ago it attracted general attention. 

 Rat scab played a role in the interpretation of certain rejuvenation experiments since 

 Fiebiger^ suggested that the alopecia which Steinach considered indicative of physio- 

 logical senility was a pathological process caused by the scab mite. In all probability 

 the operative procedures (ether) removed the parasites and the rats were not 

 rejuvenated by the ligation of the spermatic chord but recovered from a chronic skin 

 disease. 



In conclusion it may not be out of place to emphasize that the communicable dis- 

 eases of laboratory animals furnish an abundance of readily procurable material for the 

 study of disease processes. Regular and systematic autopsies may not only prepare 

 the student for his subsequent studies in human pathology but may help to establish 

 the nature of the infection which may cause epidemics among animals and thus serve 

 as an excellent introduction into the field of comparative pathology and epidemiology. 



' Schiirmann, W.: Centralhl.f. Bakteriol., Orig. I, 48, 167. 1909. 

 = Fiebiger, J.: Wien. klin. Wchnsrhr., 34, ^,64. 192 1. 



