416 Glanders 



McFadyen* was the first to recommend agglutination of 

 the glanders bacillus by the serum of supposedly infected 

 animals as a test of the existence of glanders. The subject 

 has been somewhat extensively tried and officially adopted 

 by the Prussian government. Moore and Taylor, f in a recent 

 review and examination of the test, conclude that it is easier 

 and quite as accurate as the mallein method and is applicable 

 in cases where fever exists. The maximum dilution of 

 normal horse serum that will macroscopically agglutinate 

 glanders bacilli is i : 500, but occurs in very few cases. The 

 maximum agglutinative power of the serum of diseased horses 

 not suffering from glanders is not higher than that of normal 

 serum. The diagnosis is usually not difficult to make, but 

 requires much care. Cultures of the glanders bacillus some- 

 times unexpectedly lose their ability to agglutinate. 



Cultivation. The bacillus is an aerobic and optionally 

 anaerobic organism, and can be grown in bouillon, upon 

 agar-agar, better upon glycerin agar-agar, very well upon 

 blood-serum, and quite characteristically upon potato. 

 Gelatin is not liquefied by the glanders bacillus. 



Colonies. Upon 4 per cent, glycerin agar-agar plates 

 the colonies appear upon the second day as whitish or pale 

 yellow, shining round dots. Under the microscope they 

 are brownish-yellow, thick, and granular, with sharp borders. 



Bouillon. In broth cultures the glanders bacillus causes 

 turbidity, the surface of the culture being covered by a 

 slimy scum. 



Agar-agar. Upon agar-agar and glycerin agar-agar the 

 growth occurs as a moist, shining layer. 



Blood-serum. Upon blood-serum the growth is rather 

 characteristic, the colonies along the line of inoculation 

 appearing as circumscribed, clear, transparent drops, which 

 later become confluent and form a transparent layer un- 

 accompanied by liquefaction. 



Potato. The most characteristic growth is upon potato. 

 It first appears in about forty-eight hours as a .transparent, 

 honey-like, yellowish layer, developing only at incubation 

 temperatures, and soon becoming reddish-brown in color. 

 As this brown color of the colony develops, the potato for a 

 considerable distance around it becomes greenish-brown. 

 No other organism is known to produce the same appearance. 



* "Jour. Comp. Path, and Therap.," 1896, p. 322. 



f "Jour. Infectious Diseases," iv, 1907, p. 85, supplement. 



