Oc'cunence, Etiology. 735 



etiology and symptomatology were studied and elucidated by Rivolta 

 & Micellone, Nocard, Tokishige, Marcone, Tartakowsky, Sanfeliee, 

 Pricolo. etc. 



Occurrence. The disease was formerly observed only in 

 southern Europe, particularly on the shores of the Mediter- 

 ranean, quite f i-equently in Italy and in France. Recent reports, 

 however, mention its occurrence in more northern localities 

 (Finland and northern Russia, England). It seems also to be 

 w^idely prevalent in Asia and Africa. 



The disease was oliserved by Lindquist in Finland, by Tartakowsky, Dedjulin 

 and Awryinsky in the governmental districts of Oionetz and Novfrorod in Russia, 

 by Tokishige in Japan (rather common), by Pearson in Pennsylvania, Fischer in 

 Ohio, by Does & Haan in Lower India and by Nockolds in the Philippine Islands, 

 where it appears as a very frequent disease with unfavorable course, on account 

 of which large numbers of horses have in recent times been destroyed under suspi- 

 cion of glanders. 



In 1902 it was transporte<l with shipments of horses from India to South 

 Africa and from there with English troops that returned from the Transvaal war, 

 to England in which latter country it gained wide prevalence in several garrisons 

 and was subsequently disseminated b_y discarded army horses to private stables. 

 This plague became so prevalent that the English government formulated special 

 regulations for its control, the success of which is evident from the report that 

 only two cases of the disease were observed in 1906. — In 1901 a number of 

 cases were observed in a German-Russian border villages in the government district 

 of Gumbinnen. 



Etiology. The Cryptocoecus farciminosus Rivolta (Sac- 

 charomyces farciminosus Tokishige) forms comparatively large, 

 3 to 4 '^ long, 2.4-3.6 1^ wide, doul)ly contoured, somewhat oval 

 bodies usually either somewhat pointed at the ends or pro- 

 vided with Inid-like protuberances. These organisms multiply 

 by budding and in this respect resemble saccharomyces, al- 

 though they are smaller and do not cause saccharine fermenta- 

 tion. They are not readily stained by the usual methods, even 

 carbol-fuchsin staining the contents only slightly while the cell 

 membrane remains unstained. 



Culture. Artificial cultures are difficult to obtain and growth on 

 artificial media is slow. Thus on nutrient agar grayish-white granules 

 appear only after about 30 days, subse(|uently they enlarge to form 

 prominent colonies drawn into folds resembling the convolutions of 

 the intestines. On gelatin bouillon yellowish-white sandy granules 

 appear in the course of 56 days, on potatoes light brown masses appear 

 in a somewhat shorter period while in pepton })Ouillon white flakes 

 develop in the course of 17 days. Under the microscope the colonies 

 are seen to consist of hyphae, spherical fungi and granules resembling 

 spores (Tokishige). 



According to Bridre & Negre the fact that immune bodies are present in the 

 serum of affected horses which fit into complement fixation systems with ordinary 

 yeast cells points to the blastomycetic nature of these parasites. 



In contrast to the above view Ducloux, whose observations were subsequently 

 confirmed by Thiroux & Teppaz, is of the opinion that the cause of the disease 

 is a protozoon (Leucocytoioon piroplasmoides). These investigators found round 



