24 TOXINES AND ANTITOXINES. 



are, according to EHRLICH'S terminology, simple hapiines of the 

 first class. Other toxines, however, have a more complicated 

 structure. Thus, ricine and abrine possess, in addition to their 

 toxic properties, the further characteristic of agglutinating the 

 red corpuscles of the blood. 



The question now arises whether this second property is to be 

 ascribed to some peculiar active principle invariably present in 

 preparations of ricine, or whether the ricine itself is endowed 

 with this double power. One of the proofs that the toxic and 

 agglutinating properties are separable was afforded by the fact, 

 that digestion with pepsin-hydrochloric acid soon destroyed the 

 toxicity, but did not affect the power of agglutination (JACOBY, 1 

 MICHAELIS and OppENHEiMER 2 ). It was thus possible that 

 ricinus toxine and ricinus agglutinine might be quite distinct 

 substances, analogous to tetanospasmine and tetanolysine, the 

 two separate poisons of tetanus cultivations. 



While, however, it could be proved that these were separate 

 substances, which occurred in quite different proportions in 

 different cultivations, and produced two distinct anti-bodies, 

 similar experiments with ricine gave opposite results. The 

 toxine and the agglutinine possess the same haptophore group, 

 since they produce only one antiricine (JACOBY). 



The structure of ricine, therefore, is complex. In additon to 

 its haptophore group it possesses two ergophore groups, with 

 toxic and agglutinating powers respectively ; and it is thus a 

 complex haptine of the first class. (For further particulars 

 see Ricine.^ 



In the case of other toxines the constitution is still more 

 complex and uncertain. Here, too, other activities (e.g., hsemo- 

 lytic), in addition to the toxic function, are frequently met with, 

 notably in the case of eel's blood and snake poisons. In such 

 instances, it still remains to be determined with certainty 

 whether the disintegrating principles are distinct substances. 

 This is probably the case, however, with snake poison, for 

 example. And, if so, the further question arises whether the 

 ly sines, like the toxines, are hap tines of the first class i.e., 

 contain the haptophore and ergophore groups in one complex 

 combination ; or whether they do not rather approximate in 

 constitution to the haptines of the second class, such as the 

 hsemolysines of normal and immune sera. The latter contain 



1 Jacoby, "Ueber Ricimmmunitat," Hofm. Beitr. z. Chem. Physiol., 

 i., 57, 1901. 



2 Michaelis and Oppenheimer, " Ueber Immunitat geg. Eiweisskorper," 

 Engelmanris Arch., 1902, Suppl. H. 



