BACILLI IN CHRONIC INFECTIOUS DISEASES. 497 



bacillus. According to Eiseiiberg, the bacilli are two to three times as long 

 as broad, and may grow out into filaments. 



These bacilli stain readily with the aniline colors and by Gram's method. 

 The capsule may be demonstrated by the methods usually employed in stain- 

 ing Friedlander's bacillus, or by the following method which is especially 

 recommended by Alvarez : The excised portions of tissue involved in the dis- 

 ease are placed for twenty-four hours in a one-per-cent solution of osmic 

 acid and then in absolute alcohol. When properly hardened thin sections 

 are made; these are stained in a hot solution of aniline-water-methyl-violet 

 for a few minutes, and then decolorized, by Gram's method, in iodine so- 

 lution. 



Biological Characters. An aerobic, non-motile, non-liquefying bacillus 

 (facultative anaerobic ?). 



In gelatin stab cultures the growth resembles that of Friedlander's ba- 

 cillus i.e., a nail-like growth, consisting of densely crowded, opaque colonies 

 along the line of puncture, and a heaped-up, white, glistening mass upon the 

 surface, hemispherical in form and viscous in consistence. Upon gelatin 

 plates yellowish-white, spherical colonies are developed within two or three 

 days, which under the microscope are seen to be granular. Upon potato a 

 cream-like growth occurs along the line of inoculation, which is white or 

 yellowish-white in color, and in which gas bubbles may be developed. De- 

 velopment is most rapid at a temperature of 35 to 38, but also occurs at the 

 room temperature. 



Pathogenesis. The etiological relation of this bacillus to the disease with 

 which it is associated has not been established. It is pathogenic for mice 

 and for guinea-pigs, less so for rabbits; in this regard, as in its morphology 

 and growth in various culture media, it bears a close resemblance to Fried- 

 lander's bacillus, which is also found not infrequently in the nasal secretions 

 of healthy persons and in those suffering from chronic nasal catarrh or ozaena. 



The principal points of difference, as pointed out by Baumgarten, are as 

 follows : The bacillus of rhinoscleroma is usually more decidedly rod-shaped 

 than Friedlander's bacillus, although both may be of so short an oval as to 

 resemble micrococci. The first-mentioned bacillus constantly presents the 

 appearance of being surrounded by a transparent capsule, even in the cul- 

 tures in artificial media, .while Friedlander's bacillus in such media does not 

 usually present this appearance, unless as a result of special treatment. 

 Finally, the bacillus of rhinoscleroma may retain its color, in part at least, 

 when treated by Gram's method, while Friedlander's bacillus is completely 

 decolorized when placed in the iodine solution employed in this method. 



Notwithstanding these points of difference, Baumgarten is not entirely 

 satisfied that this bacillus is a distinct species, and several bacteriologists 

 have maintained that it is identical with the bacillus of Friedlander. 



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