238 TOXINES AND ANTITOXINES. 



from scorpion venom a lecithide possessing an immediate blood- 

 solvent action, and exactly analogous to that obtained from 

 cobra venom. The sting of the scorpion is not very dangerous to 

 man, but only because the amount of venom injected in a single 

 sting is too small. 



Fish Venoms. 



An apparently true toxine was isolated by BmoT 1 from the 

 poison glands of the Trachinus draco (greater weever), though 

 its existence had already been known. He extracted the poison 

 glands by means of glycerin containing chloroform, and filtered 

 the neutral solution. 



The poison causes convulsions and paralysis in frogs, and death 

 results from prostration (GRESSIN, BOTTAKD). The heart is also 

 directly affected (PoHL 2 ). 



It has a very similar energetic action upon guinea-pigs, especially 

 on intraperitoneal injection (and this was also found to be the 

 case by PHISALIX with Trachinus vipera), but has less effect upon 

 rabbits. 



A characteristic symptom is the rapid paralysis of the ex- 

 tremity where the poison was injected. Death results almost 

 instantaneously after intravenous injection ; but the animal 

 recovers very rapidly from the effects of smaller doses. The 

 poison also causes severe local injuries on subcutaneous in- 

 jection. 



The toxine is destroyed when heated for thirty minutes at 

 100 C., and also by calcium chloride and gold chloride. 



The poison also possesses hsemolytic powers. The normal 

 serum of the horse contains an antihsemolysine against trachi- 

 nus lysine, just as it does against snake hsemolysine. This is 

 destroyed at 50 C., but the lysine can resist a temperature of 

 100 C. for a short time (twenty minutes). 



Trachinus poison is quite distinct from snake venom, since 

 its action is different, and an anti-snake-venom serum has no 

 restrictive effect either upon its toxic or its lytic function. 



Babbits can best be rendered immune by the cautious injec- 



1 Briot, "Etudes sur le venin de la vive (Trachimisdraco)," Journ. de 

 Phys. et PathoL, 1903, 271 (reprint). Briot cites the following works on 

 poisonous fish : Gressin, Contrib. a I'etude de I'appareil a venin chez les 

 poissons du genre vive, Thesis, Paris, 1884 ; Bottard, Les poissons vdmmeux, 

 Thesis, Paris, 1884; Phisalix, Bull, du Museum d'Histoire Natur., 1899; 

 Contiere, Les poissons vtnimeux, Thesis, Paris, 1899. See also Robert, 

 loc. cit. 



2 Pohl, Prager Med. Woch., 1893, 31. 



