Physiology. — ‘“‘Jdentity of the blood-digestive and gelatine-liquefying 
bacterial actions.” By Prof. J. J. van Logurm. (Communicated 
by Prof. C. Eykmav.) 
(Communicated at the meeting of March 27, 1920). 
In investigations on the determination of the so-called specific El- 
Torvibrios with regard to choleravibrios, I obtained as a result of 
more general importance a sharper definition of the idea ‘‘haemo- 
lysis” *). By admitting that the changes in the blood, caused by 
bacteria, may be of different nature, I suggested to understand by 
haemolysis only the causing of oxyhaemoglobin to come out from the 
red blood corpuscles; I opposed to this the digestion of blood elements 
by bacteria, which I indicated as haemo-digestion. 
Investigations by others (Grine’*) Lowy’) Fru‘), Kraus‘), Sopnie 
WorLMANN®) have taught us the practical significance of these for 
the distinction of choleravibrios. _BAERTHLEIN °) pointed out the 
necessity of a right distinction of these ideas, also in the case of 
other bacteria, whereas SNapprr*) — in connection with his inves- 
tigations on the decomposition of oxyhaemoglobin in the alimentary 
canal — has occupied himself with the nature of the digestion. 
The following illustrates the latter problem. 
Some time ago already, I put the question whether the haemo- 
digestive quality of the choleravibrio is identical with its collolytic 
capacity and I mentioned several facts which pointed to this 
possibility. 
1. Both the qualities are transient and their decline runs parallel 
in a certain strain. 
2. The processes of the haemodigestion and of the gelatine-lique- 
1) Centralbl. f. Bakt. Ie Abt. Orig., vol. 57, 1911; vol. 67, 1913 and vol. 70, 
1913; Ned. Tijdschr. v. Geneeskunde, 1915, II, p. 22. 
2) Indian Journal of medical research, vol. 2, 1914. 
5) Centralblatt f. Bakt., 1, Orig., vol. 75, 1915, 
4) Geneeskundig Tijdschr. v. Nederlandsch Indië, vol. 53, 1913. 
5) Die Cholera asiatica und die Cholera nostras, 1914 (with Busson). 
6) Wiener klinische Wochenschrift 1917, 
~ 7) Centralbl. f. Bakt., I, Orig., vol. 74, 1914. 
8) Ned. Tijdschr. v. Geneeskunde 1918, I, 1911. 
ge 
