NUCLEOPROTEID IMMUNIZATION. 303 



placentar constituents in the circulation by this 

 biologic method. 



Antithyroid serum is prepared by immuniza- 

 tion with ground-up thyroid tissue or with extracts 

 of the organ. It is hemolytic, even though all the 

 blood has been washed from the tissue which was 

 injected. Portis immunized with the "colloid" 

 material of the gland obtaining a hemolytic thyro- 

 toxic serum. When injected into the living animal 

 degenerative changes are produced in the thyroid, 

 and some authors report the tetanic phenomena 

 which often follow surgical removal of the thyroid. 

 In very careful work, however, Portis could not 

 produce "the exact picture presented by thyrodec- 

 tomized animals." Degenerative changes were 

 found in various organs, as liver, spleen and kid- 

 neys. 



With the idea of preparing an antigen which 

 would contain, so far as possible, only substances 

 characteristic of variety of cells used, Beebe has 

 made use of nucleuproteids of various organs, espe- 

 cially thyroid gland, to produce antiserums. His 

 results would indicate that in this way serums may 

 be obtained, which are specific for different vari- 

 eties of cells except in high concentration. 



With the use of such a thyrotoxic serum he has 

 reported good results in cases of hyperthyroidism. 



Pearce has failed to confirm these results and 

 obtains results, with neucleoproteid as antigen, 

 which are similar to those which he obtained with 

 simple extracts. 



Beebe, however, criticises the technic of Pearce 

 in that Pearce heated his preparation, thus, accord- 

 ing to Beebe, destroying the specific biologic char- 

 acter of the extract. 



