BACTERIAL CELLULAR SUBSTANCE 61 



noted that such an extract had the appearance of fat and 

 melted not much over 40. Hammerschlag 1 obtained from 

 the tubercle bacillus free fatty acids that melt at 63 and 

 concluded that the fat of this organism consists mainly of 

 tripalmatin and tristearin, and that it contains little or 

 no triolein. Nishimura 2 obtained from the alcoholic and 

 ethereal extracts of his water bacillus a putty-like mass 

 with the properties of lecithin. Meyer 3 found that the 

 fat in bacillus tumescens gradually increases until spore 

 formation occurs, when it disappears, the spores also being 

 free from fat. Klebs 4 found in the tubercle bacillus 20.5 

 per cent, of a red fat, melting at 42, and 1.14 per cent, of a 

 white fat melting above 50; the latter being insoluble in 

 ether, but soluble in benzol. De Schweinitz and Dorset"' 

 saponified fats from the tubercle bacillus and from the 

 melting-points of the acids concluded that the fat of this 

 organism contains palmitic and arachidic acids, while 

 that of the glanders bacillus contains oleic and palmitic. 

 They also found a crystalline acid, for which they suggested 

 the name tuberculinic acid, though this is quite different 

 from Ruppel's nucleic acid. This new fatty acid was 

 obtained mainly from the culture medium, only in small 

 amounts from the bacilli. The crystals are prismatic or 

 needles, melting at 161 to 164, readily soluble in water, 

 alcohol, and ether, and not responsive to the biuret test. 

 Analysis showed close correspondence to the formula, 

 C 7 H 10 O 4 . The authors called attention to the similarity in 

 composition and properties of this body to teraconic acid, 

 and suggested that this may be the substance which is 

 responsible for the coagulation necrosis and that it is the 

 temperature reducing substance. In a later paper they 

 described a crude fat extracted from the tubercle bacillus 

 and from which they obtained an acid melting at 62, 

 unchanged by recrystallization. In concluding they decided 

 that the fat of the tubercle bacillus consists principally of 

 a glyceride of palmitic acid with a minute amount of the 



1 Loc. cit. 2 Loc. cit. 3 Loc. cit. 



4 Loc. cit. 5 Loc. cit. 



