An Index of Blood-relationship 39 



Pisces. 



Eel Serum : The highly toxic properties of the serum of Anguilla 

 were discovered by Mosso (1888, p. 144), who found that -5 c.c. thereof 

 injected intravenously into a dog weighing 15,206 g., produced death 

 in 7 minutes, even a dose of '02 c.c. per kilo being fatal. He referred to 

 the toxic body as "ichthiotoxin." The serum of Muraena proved also 

 highly toxic, '66 c.c. killing a dog of 6,1 60 g. in 5 minutes; '3 c.c. killing 

 a rabbit of l,030g. in 2 minutes. A toxic serum is also possessed by 

 Ganger myrus and C. vulgaris. Pigeons are susceptible to large doses 

 according to Camus and Gley (1899, p. 785). These authors (24, 

 vn. and x. 1899, p. 786) found the blood corpuscles of new-born rabbits 

 to be highly resistant to the haemolytic action of eel serum. They con- 

 sidered this due to a resisting power inherent in the cell, not to the 

 existence of normal anti-haemolysin. (See p. 22.) 



The study of the haemolytic effects of eel serum in vitro, begun by 

 Mosso, were extended by others. Tchistovitch (25, v. 1899, p. 407) and 

 Camus and Gley (x. 1899, p. 784) found the corpuscles of the fowl very 

 resistant. The latter found the corpuscles of the pigeon very resistant, 

 whilst Tchistovitch states they are susceptible, though almost insoluble. 

 Friedenthal, working with unwashed hedgehog corpuscles, found them 

 haemolysed by eel serum ; whereas Camus and Gley state that they resist 

 haemolysis. Camus and Gley state that the corpuscles of the guinea-pig 

 and rabbit are haemolysed by eel serum, whereas those of the Bat, Bufo 

 vulgaris, Rana temporaria and R. esculenta, and Testudo graeca are very 

 resistant. They attribute this resistance to the corpuscles, not to anti- 

 haemolysin. Friedenthal, working with unwashed frog corpuscles, states 

 that they were haemolysed by the eel serum. These somewhat contra- 

 dictory results may be explained by the fact observed by Ehrlich and 

 Morgenroth (1899, n. p. 13 repr.) that the haemolytic power of eel serum 

 may vary greatly, at times haemolysing powerfully, at other times not 

 at all. 



In Friedenthal's experiments, the blood of Acantkias vulgaris was 

 rapidly haemolysed by eel serum, and that of Labrus maculatus haemo- 

 lysed teleostian blood. The serum of A. vulgaris haemolysed the 

 corpuscles of a bird (Larus argentatus), a rat (Mus decumanus), as well 

 as that of other Teleostea (Labrus maculatus and Anguilla vulgaris). 

 and the serum of the shark was "not indifferent" to the corpuscles of 

 other Elasmobranchs, viz. Raja batis. 



