358 BACTERIOLOGICAL CHEMISTRY 



Autolytic enzymes isolated from pneumococci them- 

 selves have been shown to attack the corresponding 

 polysaccharides and also those of Str. salivarius, of the 

 bovine vitreous humour and of the umbilical cord, all 

 of which contain an acetylglucosamine-glucuronic acid 

 complex, hyaluronic acid. 



The enzyme, hyaluronidase, is also found in many 

 anaerobes, including CI. perf ring ens and those of the 

 gas gangrene group ; it is identical with or very closely 

 related with the so-called " spreading factor " of these 

 organisms . 



Similar specific polysaccharides were isolated from 

 Friedlander's bacillus, Klebsiella pneumonice, Types A, 

 B and C. Those from Types B and C, although very 

 similar chemically (see Table 20), are quite distinct 

 serologically. 



The tubercle bacilli afford very complex mixtures of 

 polysaccharides which have not yet been thoroughly 

 worked out. A polysaccharide having a rotation of 

 [a]D+67° was isolated, which on hydrolysis yielded 30 

 per cent, of c?-arabinose, together with glucose, galactose, 

 mannose and a sugar acid. It was also found to be present 

 in tuberculin. Mycobacterium phlei yields a polysac- 

 charide, precipitated by basic lead acetate, which gives 

 rise to arabinose, mannose and inositol on hydrolysis. 

 The avian tubercle bacillus produces a polysaccharide 

 which gives two molecules of mannose and one of inositol 

 on hydrolysis . On a synthetic medium the human tubercle 

 bacillus forms a polysaccharide, having a specific rotation 

 [a]i>+32°, which yields 19-7 per cent, of mannose and 

 10 per cent, of c?-arabinose. The lipoid fractions contain 

 glycerophosphoric acid, mannose, inositol, arabinose, 

 glucose, fructose, glucosamine and other unidentified 

 carbohydrates. The acetone soluble fat fraction of the 



