consequent upon Inflammations of acute local Character. 195 



substances, e.g., fibrin ferment,* hemoglobin,f septic fluids,^ pus, 

 lymph cells, hemialbumose,|| peptones,^[ pepsin,^]" nucleic acid, 

 nuclein,** leech extract,ff tuberculin.*]; pyocyanin,^[^[ curare, uric 

 acid, urates, dead bacterial cultures,|||| bacterial extracts, |||| 

 bacterial proteins (Buchner),^[^[ filtered yeast cultures, carmine in 

 suspension,*** produce more or less pronounced and rapid often 

 immediate diminution of the number of leucocytes in the blood of 

 the general circulation. This diminution has been shown by Lowitftt 

 to be preliminary to a subsequent increase, and the phase of leuco- 

 cytopenia, on account of its short duration, seems to have escaped the 

 attention of many observers who have well recognised the much 

 longer lasting subsequent leucocytosis. The diminution is sometimes 

 enormous in degree. In some of L6 wit's experiments the number of 

 leucocytes fell in five seconds from the time of injection to less 

 than one-twentieth the number circulating immediately previous to 

 the injection. Lowit has discovered that the diminution, whether 

 great or small, is at expense of the polynuclear leucocytes (the 

 granular leucocytes of my countings). He opines that the diminution 

 is due to destruction (he says the dissolving up) of these leucocytes. 

 His conclusion harmonises with the view of the Dorpat school, 

 according to which haemic leucocytes are easily destroyed by a 

 number of experimental procedures, some not obviously severe. As to 

 curare, Drosdoff JJJ asserted, many years ago, that frog's leucocytes 

 rapidly break down in blood serum (mammalian !) containing curare. 



* Birk, ' Das Fibrin-Ferment im lebenden Organismus,' Dorpat, 1880. 

 t Bojanus, ' Exp. Beitrage z. Physiol. u. Pathol. d. Blutes,' Dorpat, 1881. 

 J Hoffman, 'Ein Beitrag z. Physiol. u. Pathol. d. farblosen Blutkorperchen,' 

 Dorpat, 1881. 



Samson-Himmelstjerna, ' Exp. Stud. ii. d. Blut in physiol. u. pathol. Beziehung.,' 

 Dorpat, 1882. 

 || Lowit, op. cit. 



*|T Groth, ' Ueber die Schicksale d. farblosen Elemente im kreisenden Blute,' 

 Dorpat, 1884 ; Lowit, op. cit. ; Wright, ' Eoy. Soc. Proc.,' February 9, 1893. 



** Horbacewski, ' M. f. Chemie,' &c., Vienna, 1891, vol. 12, p. 221. Lowit, op. 

 cit. 



ft Lowit, op. cit. (But Wright (loc. cit.) finds that intravenous injection of 

 leech extract does not reduce the number of leucocytes.) 



Jt Tchistowitsch, 'Berlin Klin. Woch.,' p. 838, 1891; Botkin, 'Deutsch. Med. 

 Woch.,' 1892, No. 15 ; Eieder, op. cit. 

 Lowit, op. cit. 



|| || Hankin and Kanthack, ' Proc. Cambridge Philosoph. Soc.,' January, 1892 ; 

 Kanthack, ' Brit. Med. Journal," 1892. 



IT Werigo states that the injection of the filtered cultures does not give the 

 reaction. Rieder, op. cit. 



*** Werigo, " Les Globules Blancs comme Protecteurs du Sang," ' Annal. Instit. 

 Pasteur,' 1892. 

 ttt Op. cit. 



J Hofmann und Schwalbe, ' Jahrsb.,' 1873, p. 67. 



