OPSONINS AND VACCINE THERAPY 347 



NON-SPECIFIC PROTEIN THERAPY 



A very surprising- development of the last ton years has been 

 the observation that profound physiological reactions accompanied 

 by occasional therapeutic benefit in infectious diseases has followed 

 the intravenous injection of bacterial and other proteins which ap- 

 parently had no specific relationship to the nature of the infectious 

 process. The first observations were more or less accidental, in- 

 cident to attempts by various writers to treat diseases like typhoid 

 fever by the intravenous injection of typhoid bacilli. Ichiwaka, 

 Kraus, Gay and others injected sensitized and unsensitized typhoid 

 bacilli intravenously into patients suffering from typhoid fever, ob- 

 serving a sudden drop of temperature with chill, and frequent 

 benficial effects on the course of the disease. It was soon found 

 that similar results could be obtained in these diseases with colon 

 bacilli, paratyphoid bacilli, etc. Holler 26 obtained striking results 

 in typhoid fever by injecting deutero-albumose. Other proteins and 

 proteose substances were subsequently used by many observers, and 

 important studies on the theoretical effects of the injection of such 

 substances have been made by Jobling and Petersen. 27 It can be 

 regarded as quite definite that these reactions are entirely non- 

 specific. The substances used have been typhoid vaccine, primary 

 and secondary albumoses, gonococcus and other bacterial vaccines, 

 normal serum, leucocyte extracts, etc., etc. The method has been 

 applied to a great many definite infections, such as typhoid fever, 

 general sepsis, pneumonia, gonorrheal infections, and to arthritis 

 and dermatological lesions, etc. Miller 28 has used typhoid vaccines 

 in typhoid fever and other conditions, and, in general, concludes 

 that .there can be little doubt that in a limited number of cases 

 rapid and sometimes permanent beneficial results, are obtained after 

 a preliminary slight rise of temperature and subsequent drop, often 

 with a chill. He also concludes that if an amount just sufficient 

 to incite a chill is used, that is, if the dosage is carefully controlled, 

 the treatment is without danger. He has given 2,000 intravenous 

 injections of typhoid vaccine in the Cook County Hospital, without 

 serious consequences, except for the development of delirium tremens 



~ Holler, Beit. z. Frank, u. Inkeft., 6, 1917, cited from Miller, Jour. A. M. A., 

 76, Jan., 1921. 



"'Jobling and Petersen, Jour. Exper. Med., 20, 1914. 

 ** Miller, loc. cit. 



