PATHOGENIC EFFECTS 487 



The organism is a strict aerobe, and in the case of cultures in 

 fluid media, e.g., serum bouillon, the tubes ought to be placed in 

 a sloped position, in order to expose a greater surface to the air. 

 Bordet and Gengou completely confirmed the observations 

 mentioned above as to the very frequent, almost constant, 

 presence of influenza-like bacilli. They obtained growths of 

 these organisms, and on comparing them with their own bacillus 

 found that distinct cultural differences could be made out. The 

 most important distinctions were, however, obtained on studying 

 the serum reactions of convalescents from the disease. They 

 found that in many cases, though not invariably, such sera 

 agglutinated their bacillus, but none of the influenza-like or- 

 ganisms. The most important result, however, was that in 

 every case examined the serum of convalescents gave the devia- 

 tion of complement reaction very markedly with the whooping- 

 cough bacillus, but with none of the others. This means, of 

 course, that a true anti-substance to the bacillus (immune-body 

 or substance sensibilisatrice) was present in the serum, and points 

 to a true infection with the organism (p. 132). The results of 

 the application of the test to adults suffering from bronchial 

 irritation would go to show that they more frequently suffer 

 from whooping-cough infection than was formerly supposed, the 

 paroxysmal stage being often absent. 



Pathogenic Effects. The general results obtained by Bordet 

 and Gengou were that the ordinarily used animals were not 

 susceptible to true infection with the bacillus, but that it 

 contained a powerfully acting endotoxin, which produced both 

 local and general effects. The injection of a small quantity of 

 the bacillus into the eye of a rabbit produced a local necrosis, 

 with little inflammatory change, and the introduction of dead, 

 as well as living, cultures into guinea-pigs caused death from 

 toxic action, there being hsemorrhagic oedema locally and 

 haemorrhages and necrotic foci in organs. Similar results were 

 obtained with an endotoxin prepared according to Besredka's 

 method. They advanced the view that the bacillus is present 

 in large numbers at the beginning of the disease, and inflicts 

 some local damage on the bronchial tubes which may persist 

 after the disappearance of the bacillus and keep up the irritation. 

 It was not found possible to obtain an antitoxin to this toxin. 

 Very important results have, however, been since obtained by 

 Klimenko, who succeeded in infecting monkeys and young dogs 

 by intratracheal injection of pure cultures of the bacillus. After 

 a period of incubation, there occurred an illness in which 

 symptoms of pulmonary irritation and irregular pyrexia were 



