PUTREFACTIVE PROCESSES IN THE INTESTINE. 495 



fed with sterile food, had continuous hunger and ate abundantly, but 

 soon died, in about the same time as a starving chicken. On mixing 

 with the food, at the proper time, a variety of bacteria from hen feces, 

 they gained weight again and recovered. 



The bacterial action in the intestinal canal is, at least in certain cases, 

 necessary, and it acts in the interest of the organism. This action may, 

 by the formation of further cleavage products, involve a loss of valuable 

 material to the organism, and it is therefore important that putrefaction 

 in the intestine be kept within certain limits. If an animal is killed while 

 digestion in the intestine is going on, the contents of the small intestine 

 give out a peculiar but not putrescent odor. Also the odor of the con- 

 tents of the large intestine is far less offensive than a putrefying pancreas 

 infusion or a putrefying mixture rich in protein. From this one may 

 conclude that putrefaction in the intestine is ordinarily not nearly so 

 intense as outside of the organism. 



It seems thus to be provided, under physiological conditions, that 

 putrefaction shall not proceed too far, and the factors which here come 

 into consideration are probably of different kinds. Absorption is 

 undoubtedly one of the most important of them, and it has been proven 

 by actual observation that the putrefaction increases, as a rule, as the 

 absorption is checked and fluid masses accumulate in the intestine. The 

 character of the food also has an unmistakable influence, and it seems 

 as if a large quantity of carbohydrates in the food acts against putre- 

 faction (HIRSCHLER *). It has been shown by POHL, BIERNACKI, ROVIGHI, 

 WINTERNITZ, SCHMITZ, and others 2 that milk and kephir have a specially 

 strong preventive action on putrefaction. This action is not due to the 

 casein, but chiefly to the lactose and also in part to the lactic acid. 



A specially strong preventive action on putrefaction has been ascribed 

 for a long time to the bile. This anti-putrid action does not exist in 

 neutral or faintly alkaline bile, which itself easily putrefies, but to the 

 free bile-acids, especially taurocholic acid (MALY and EMICH, LINDBER- 

 GER 3 ). There is no question that the free bile-acids have a strong 

 preventive action on putrefaction outside of the organism, and it is there- 

 fore difficult to deny such an action in the intestine. Notwithstanding 

 this, the anti-putrid action of the bile in the intestine is not considered 

 by certain investigators (VoiT, ROHMANN, HIRSCHLER and TERRAY, 

 LANDAUER and ROSENBERG 4 ) as of great importance. 



1 Hirschler, Zeitschr. f. physiol. Chem., 10; Zimnitzki, ibid., 39 (literature). 



2 Schmitz, ibid., 17, 401, which gives references to the older literature, and 19. See 

 also Salkowski, Centr-albl. f. d. med. Wiss., 1893, 467, and Seelig, Virchow's Arch., 126 

 (literature) . 



3 Maly and Emich, Monatshefte f. Chem., 4; Lindberger, footnote 3, p. 483. 



4 Voit, Beitr. zur Biologic, Jubilaumschrift, Stuttgart, 1882; Rohmann, Pfliiger's 



