CHEMOTAXIS OF LEUCOCYTES 251 



of the disintegration of leucocytes and otlujr cells had a strong posi- 

 tive chemotactic influence. They also corroborated the statement of 

 Vaillard and Vincent that lactic acid is an actively repellant substance, 

 for thoy found that tubes containing a pyocyaneus culture, which 

 ordinarily became filled with leucocytes rapidly, did not become in- 

 vaded at all if lactic acid was also added in a strength of 1 : 500, although 

 leucocytes did enter when the dilution was 1 : 1000. 



Gabritchevskyi^ studied the chemical influence of a large number 

 of substances on leucocytes and divided them into three groups: I. 

 Substances exerting "negative chemotaxis, " including those that at- 

 tracted only a few leucocytes. ^^ II. Substances with "indifferent 

 chemotaxis" which attracted moderate numbers of leucocytes. III. 

 Substances with positive chemotaxis. If we correct the groupings 

 made by Gabritchevsky we have the following classification : 



I. Substances negatively chemotactic or indifferent: 



(a) Concentrated solutions of sodium and potassium salts; (6) Lactic 

 acid in all concentrations; (c) quinine (0.5 per cent.); {d) alcohol (10 

 per cent.); (e) chloroform in watery solution; (/) jequirity (2 per cent., 

 passed through Chamberland filter); {g) glycerol (10 per cent, to 1 per 

 cent.); {h) bile; (i) B. cholerae gallinarium. 

 11. Substances with feeble chemotaxis : 



(o) Distilled water; (6) dilute solutions of sodium and potassium salts 

 (1-0.1 per cent.); (c) phenol; {d) antipyrin; (e) phloridzin; (/) papayotin 

 (in frog); (g) glycogen; {h) peptone; (i) bouillon; 0) blood and aqueous 

 humor; {k) carmine. 

 III. Substances with strong positive chemotaxis: 



(a) Papayotin (in rabbits); {h) sterilized living cultures of bacteria, 

 whether pathogenic or non-pathogenic. 



These results can only be considered as suggestive and not as accu- 

 rate findings, in view of other contradictory results. Buchner^^ 

 obtained from the pneumohacillus of Friedlander, a protein which ex- 

 erted a strong chemotactic influence, thus showing the chemical nature 

 of the attraction of leucocytes by bacteria, and he isolated other 

 similar proteins from other bacteria. He also obtained a "glutin- 

 casein" from grain which was related chemically to the bacterial pro- 

 teins, and which was equally chemotactic. The metabolic products 

 of bacteria, however, he found to be negatively chemotactic. Alkali 

 albuminate and hemi-albumose were strongly positive, but peptone 

 was not. Glycine and leucine were found to be chemotactic, but 

 urea, ammonium urate, skatole, tyrosine, and trimethylamine were 

 not. It was also observed that if the positively chemotactic sub- 

 stances were injected subcutaneously, they produced general as well 

 as local leucocytosis. The products of the action of serum on bacteria, 

 " anaphylatoxin, " produce inflammatory reactions, and probably are 



'^ Ann. d. I'Inst. Pasteur, 1890 (4), 346. 



^* Evidently these substances were not all negatively chemotactic, but were 

 relatively slightly chemotactic or indifferent; yet in the literature generally these 

 experiments have been cited as indicating a negative chemotactic influence of the 

 substances studied. 



'« Berl. klin. Wochenschr., 1890 (27), 1084. 



