ETIOLOGY 153 



war produced a very general diffusion of this disease, from 

 which the country is still suffering. 



Insular places, especially if far from the main land and 

 free from importation of horses, usually escape. Thus glanders 

 is very rare in Iceland and in the Faroe islands. In Australia, 

 Tasmania and New Zealand it is reported to be unknown. 



^ 131. Etiology. Bacterium mallei, the specific cause 

 of glanders, was discovered and isolated in pure culture almost 

 at the same time (1882) by Loeffler. Schiitz, Israel, Bouchard, 

 Charrin, Weichselbaum, Kauzfeld and Kitt. It is found in 

 the recent nodules, in the discharge from the nostrils, pus from 

 the specific ulcers, and occasionally in the blood of animals 

 affected with glanders. 



Morphologically it is a small organism with rounded or 

 pointed ends. It varies in breadth from 0.2^11 to o.4/< and 

 from i.5/< to 3// in length. It is usually single but pairs and 

 long filaments, especially on potato cultures, are not rare. It 

 frequently breaks into short, almost coccus-like elements. 

 Galli-Valerio found great variations in its morphology when 

 o-rown under certain different conditions. Branching forms 

 were numerous. 



It stains with some difficulty. Of the aniline colors, the 

 best results are obtained with the aqueous solutions, when they 

 are made feebly alkaline. It is decolorized by Gram's method. 

 It grows well, but slowly, at the body temperature on 

 glycerin agar, in acid-glycerin bouillon, on l)lood-serum and 

 on potato. 



Of the test animals, guinea pigs and field mice are the 

 most susceptible. In guinea pigs, subcutaneous injections are 

 followed in four or five days by swelling at the point of inocu- 

 lation and sloughing of the skin, which are followed by the 

 formation of a chronic, purulent ulcer. The lymphatic glands 

 become inflamed and symptoms of general infection develop 

 in from two to four weeks ; the glands suppurate and in males 

 the testicles are involved. A purulent inflammation of the 

 joints may occur. The formation of the specific ulcers upon 



