202 TOXINES AND ANTITOXIN ES. 



lethal dose for a mouse was 0*001 mgrm. The lethal dose for 

 1 grm. of mouse was found by RoMER 1 to be 0'0005 mgrm. 



Like ricine it produced inflammation, but necroses were seldom 

 observed. On the other hand, a specific action of abrine is that 

 it causes the hair to fall out rapidly around the point of injection, 

 until complete baldness results. 



The appearance on post-viortem dissection is almost the same 

 as in the case of ricine ; an additional effect being a characteristic 

 hydropic degeneration of the muscle of the heart (WERHOFSKY 2 ). 

 Unlike ricine it also acts in small doses on fishes' blood (LAU, 

 loc. cit.). 



But the conclusive fact is that a state of immunity can be 

 produced against abrine, which does not afford protection against 

 ricine ; in like manner animals rendered proof against ricine are 

 not immune to abrine. 



Action upon the Eye. The action of abrine upon the conjunc- 

 tiva is much more energetic than that of ricine, injection being 

 followed by serious permanent lesions of the cornea or by 

 panophthalmitis. In consequence of its energetic irritant 

 action abrine is sometimes used in ophthalmic medicine, the 

 violent inflammation produced frequently causing the dis- 

 appearance of new inflammatory vessels and leucoma in the 

 cornea. The maximum initial therapeutic dose is given by 

 ROMER 3 as about O'Ol mgrm. for rabbits. 



According to EHRLICH the action of abrine can be regulated 

 by immunising the conjunctiva itself with increasing doses. For 

 practical purposes ROMER has carried this immunisation to such 

 a pitch that it is possible to avoid all the more serious symptoms 

 without affecting the therapeutic action. Antitoxine is then 

 produced in the conjunctiva itself. 



Part of the poison is also absorbed from there and produces a 

 general formation of antitoxine and immunity, although not to 

 so pronounced an extent as after subcutaneous injection. The 

 greatest degree of immunity attained was 500 antitoxic units, 

 and local immunity was produced more rapidly than general 

 immunity. Passive immunisation of the connective tissue with 

 antiabrine serum only affords protection so long as the antitoxine 

 itself is still present. On the other hand, the subcutaneous in- 

 jection of large doses of antitoxine also protects the eye. An 

 attack of abrine ophthalmia can be successfully treated by local 



1 Romer, "Ueber Abrinimmunitat," Arch.f. Ophthalm., lii., 90, 1901. 



2 Werhofsky, " Beitr. z. pathol. Anat. der Abrinvergiftung," Zeiglers 

 Beitr. %. pathol. Anat., xviii., 115, 1895. 



3 Romer, "Ueber Abrinimmunitat," Arch.f. Ophthalm., lii., 72, 1901. 



