Feb. i8, 1918 Efficacy of Some Anthelmintics 417 



PELLETIERINE TANNATE 



For worms in cats. — Pelletierine tannate has long been recognized 

 as an effective taeniacide. According to the U. S. Dispensatory — ^ 



The efficacy of pelletierine as a taeniacide has been abundantly confirmed, and 

 it appears to be established that the tannate is the most effective and the least dan- 

 gerous form of the remedy, — probably because its insolubility prevents its rapid ab- 

 sorption and enables it to come in prolonged contact with the worm. 



A test of this drug was made by the junior writer on two cats weighing 

 approximately 3 and 4 kilos each. Sixty-five mgm. of pelletierine tannate 

 per kilo were administered in capsules to each animal and were followed 

 one hour later by 25 mils of castor oil. Prior to the administration of 

 the anthelmintic the cats were starved for 24 hours. 



The animals were fed shortly after the administration of the castor oil. 



All feces passed during the four days following the administration of 

 the drug were negative for parasites. Cat 2 vomited immediately after 

 feeding, or a little more than an hour after taking the pelletierine. On 

 post-mortem examination cat i had 29 Belascaris cati and 4 Dipylidiuw, 

 caninum; cat 2 had i Taenia taeniae formis. 



In this experiment pelletierine tannate proved unsuccessful as an 

 anthelmintic for species of Taenia, Dipylidium, or ascarids in cats. The 

 complete failure of the drug is not easy to understand. In the case of 

 cat 2 the drug might have been expelled in the vomitus before it had 

 acted on the Taenia, but this is unlikely, since the vomiting did not occur 

 until more than an hour after the ingestion of the pelletierine. 



As the pelletierine tannate used had been in the laboratory for at least 

 six years it was submitted for examination to the Biochemic Division of 

 the Bureau of Animal Industry. The report was returned that the sam- 

 ple responded to all the tests for pelletierine taimate given in the Pharma- 

 copeia. The Pharmacopeia specifies that the drug shall be kept in small 

 well-stoppered bottles away from the light, a condition complied with in 

 this case. There seems to be no reason to suppose that the pelletierine 

 tannate that was used had undergone deterioration, and its failure to 

 give results remains unexplained. 



For worms in dogs. — As pelletierine tannate had shown a surprising 

 inefficacy in regard to tapeworms in cats, a further test of this drug was 

 made by the junior writer, using dogs as experiment animals. 



The drug was aarainistered to three dogs weighing from 11.8 to 14 

 kilos, at the rate of 16 mgm. per kilo and was followed one hour later by 

 castor oil. Previous to the treatment 35 mils of castor oil were given 

 to each dog as a preliminary purgative, and the animals were then fasted 

 for 24 hours. 



' Wood, G. B., and Bache, Franklin, thb disebnsatory op thb united states op America, ed. 19. 

 p. 6°o. Philadelphia and London, 1907. 



