THE nematode described in the present paper was first discovered by J, Fibigek 

 in the cardiac portion of the stomach of the rat. By a series of experiments he 

 succeeded in proving that this nematode during its evolution uses cockroaches as a 

 host and in the stomach of the rat is able to produce papillomatous — and in certain 

 cases carcinomatous growths. 



Further investigation on the morphology of the nematode was made by Hj. 

 Ditlevsen, who defmed it as a hitherto not described species of the genus Spiroptera. 



Before proceeding to a description of the morphological and biologicai features of 

 the nematode a summary of the main points of the papers ^) previously published by 

 J. Fibiger will be given here: 



The nematode was originally found in 3 wild rats (m. decumanus) belonging to the stock 

 of rats of the anatomical-pathological Institute of the University of Copenhagen and probably 

 imported to Denmark from Dorpat. 



In these 3 rats, isolated in the same cage for a long time, the cardiac portion of the 

 stomach presented enormous papillomes, which in some respects were found similar to malignant 

 epitheUal tumours. 



In these stomachs the nematode was originally found by microscopical examination of 

 sections from the papillomatous ventral wall. Among the upper coats of the squamous-celled 

 epitheUum sharply outUned bodies of a compUcated structure were observed, containing in 

 several instances eggs with embryos. 



In order to define these bodies as veritable sections of a nematode, a great erseries of 

 sections was reconstructed and the length of the nematode thus determined as nearly 1,6 cm. 

 the diameter being nearly 0,25 mm. Later on a few nematodes were prepared perfectly out 

 of the stomachs after fixation in formahne. 



Now, however, the papillomes of the cardiac portion of the stomach can with 

 great probabiUty be referred to the nematode. Both zoological and medical literature 



^) Recherches sur un nematode et sur sa faculté de provoquer des néoformations papilloma- 

 teuses et carcinomateuses dans Testomac du rat. Acad. royale de sciences et de lettres de Dane- 

 mark. Extrait du bulletin de l'année 1913 No. 1, — Untersuchungen iiber eine Nematode (Spir- 

 optera sp. n.) und deren Fåhigkeit, papillomatose und carcinomatose Geschwulstbildungen im Magen 

 der Ratte hervorzurufen. Zeitschrift fur Krebsforschung, Bd. XIII, 1913. 



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