BACTERIA IN CERTAIN INFECTIOUS DISEASES. 515 



which Pekelharing and Winkler encountered in some of their cases. These 

 failed to grow in the usual culture media. 



In his latest communication upon the subject Pekelharing says that in 

 twelve cases out of fifteen he obtained cultures of micrococci, and bacilli in 

 three out of fifteen. From his inoculation experiments he concludes that 

 the micrococci found are the cause of the morbid phenomena which charac- 

 terize the disease. 



When in Rio de Janeiro (1887) the writer collected blood from the finger 

 from four typical cases of beri-beri, selected by Dr. Lacerda, and introduced 

 it into the usual culture media. The result of this experiment was negative, 

 agreeing in this regard with the results obtained by Eykmann. 



BRONCHITIS. 



Lumnitzer (1888) obtained from the sputum of a patient with putrid 

 oronchitis a bacillus which proved to be pathogenic for mice and for rabbits, 

 and the cultures of which gave off a characteristic odor, similar to that of 

 the putrid bronchial secretion in his patient. 



Picchini (1889), in three cases of " croupous bronchitis," made culture ex- 

 periments and isolated three different micrococci ; one developed upon nutri- 

 ent gelatin as a grayish- white mass and did not liquefy; one as a reddish- 

 gray mass, also non-liquef ying ; the third form was always associated with 

 these two. 



CARCINOMA. 



Various microorganisms have occasionally been found in carcinomatous 

 growths, and especially in those which have undergone ulceration ; but that 

 any one of these bears an etiological relation to such malignant tumors has 

 not been demonstrated. 



CEREBRO-SPINAL MENINGITIS. 



Various microorganisms have been found by bacteriologists in 

 the exudate of cerebro-spinal meningitis, and there seems to be but 

 little doubt that the meningeal inflammation is due to their presence, 

 as the bacteria usually found are pathogenic for certain of the lower 

 animals, and when introduced into a serous cavity they give rise to 

 a fibrinous or purulent inflammatory process. The researches of 

 Weichselbaum, Netter, and others show that Micrococcus pneumo- 

 nia croupossB (" diplococcus pneumonia") is the microorganism 

 most frequently found, and next to this the Diplococcus intercellula- 

 ris meningitidis of Weichselbaum. Streptococcus pyogenes has also 

 been found in a certain proportion of the cases four out of twenty- 

 five cases of purulent meningitis studied by Netter. 



Bonome, in a series of cases studied by him, obtained a micrococ- 

 cus closely resembling Micrococcus pneumonise crouposse, but which 

 he believes not to be identical with it (see Micrococcus of Bonome, 

 No. 40). 



For further details see the descriptive accounts of the micro- 

 organisms above referred to. 



CHANCROID. 



Ducrey, in an extended research (1890), was not able to cultivate any 

 specific microorganism from the pus of soft chancres, or of buboes resulting 



