TETANUS TOXINE. 107 



BRIEGER and BOER (loc. cit.) also made further experiments to 

 obtain purer preparations by means of the zinc method described 

 in the section on diphtheria toxine, or they used ammonium 

 sulphate for the precipitation, dissolved the precipitate and 

 reprecipitated the toxine with an equal volume of a O5 per 

 cent, solution of mercuric chloride. They then collected the 

 precipitate on a filter, thoroughly washed it, and treated it with 

 ammonium carbonate as previously described. HAYASHI 1 by a 

 somewhat modified method (precipitation first with ammonium 

 sulphate and then with zinc chloride) has obtained preparations 

 which, in his opinion, no longer contained non-poisonous albu- 

 moses. Hence, he concludes that since these preparations are 

 invariably precipitated by ammonium sulphate and give the 

 biuret and Millon's reactions, tetanus poison itself must be an 

 albumose. 



Owing to the very poisonous effects which tetanus toxine, 

 even in the smallest doses, has upon certain species of animals, 

 special stress has been laid upon the analogy that exists between 

 that toxine and the ferments. In point of fact there are many 

 reasons in support of that view. VAILLARD definitely terms it 

 a ferment, and other authors, such as TIZZONI, BRIEGER, &c., 

 incline to this view, which as a matter of fact has only been 

 opposed, and that not very strongly, by FERMI in his various 

 published researches. In my opinion we are justified in con- 

 cluding that there is a considerable analogy between the toxines 

 and also some other haptines and the ferments, and I have 

 advocated this view in several places. 2 



There is no doubt that rennet is a haptine, but, as regards the 

 other ferments, there are no data for settling their precise affini- 

 ties. But there is absolutely no justification for the assumption 

 that tetanus toxine acts like a ferment in the sense of affecting 

 the enzymic decomposition of substances, for tetanus toxine is 

 only akin to a ferment in the mode, and not in the scope, of its 

 action. It does not effect the changes in starch, cane sugar, &c., 

 brought about by enzymes. It is true that VAILLARD found a 

 gelatin-liquefying enzyme in virulent cultivations, but many 

 micro-organisms, pathogenic as well as non-pathogenic, produce 

 similar proteolytic and other enzymes. 



Toxoids and Toxones, The question of the presence of such 



1 Hayashi, " Ueber die chemische Natur des Tetanustoxin," Arch. f. 

 exp. PathoL, xlvii., 9, and Chem. CentralbL, i., 411, 1901. 



2 Oppenheimer, "Toxine u. Schutzstoife," Biol. CentralbL, 1899, 799; 

 id., Ferments and their Actions, London, 1901; id., " Zur Theorie der 

 Fermentprozesse," Munch, med. Woch., 1901. 



