68 EVOLUTION OF THE INFECTIOUS DISEASES 



"sensitized" and when this surcharge exceeds certain limits 

 it will burst by autolysis or will become the easy prey of 

 leukocytes according to the phenomenon of positive chemo- 

 taxis (Ch. Bordet and Massart). In this way, the source of 

 the infecting antigen will be exhausted. How can we inter- 

 vene successfully in order to throw the balance toward the 

 recovery of the organism? 



Therapy. To judge by the results of experiments and 

 clinical observations we are obliged to assume that the pres- 

 ence of a great excess of antibodies on the exterior of a cell 

 hinders hydrolysis of the antigen fixed to the interior of this 

 cell; in other words, if an infecting bacteria has produced an 

 excess of its intracellular antibody (which is antigenic for the 

 organism) and if it has fixed to this antibody a corresponding 

 quantity of antigen (which is the antibody produced by the 

 organism) it will not suffer until there is antigen in excess on 

 its exterior (antibody of the organism in the plasma). Bac- 

 tericidal anaphylactic shock is produced only when there is 

 an excess of antibody in the exterior. 



Numerous studies have shown that when one injects a 

 typhoid patient with a certain quantity of dead bacteria the 

 content of antigen is increased and, by the same amount, 

 the quantity of antibody contained in the blood is diminished. 

 At the same time a diminution or even a complete disappear- 

 ance of bacteria and a rapid amelioration of all pathologic 

 manifestations is found. This result is obtained very often, 

 but there are also failures, relapses and sometimes complica- 

 tions and this is not surprising because to obtain a result 

 which is constant and proved beforehand it would be neces- 

 sary to know the exact quantity of antigen to inject in each 

 special case in order to produce an anaphylactic crisis fatal 

 to the bacteria. Thus the antibody of the organism may act 

 on the bacteria as an anaphylactic or anaphylatoxic antigen 

 and in order to provoke an anaphylactic crisis fatal for the 

 bacteria, certain optima proportions between the quantity 

 of antibody and fixed antigen held by the bacteria and the 

 excess of this antigen in the plasma, its external medium, 

 are necessary. But these optima proportions may vary 

 widely in different cases and as there is no theory to explain 



