INFECTIONS OF THE DIGESTIVE TRACT 345 



bacterial processes in the intestinal tract by means of 

 specific bacterial vaccines or through the use of specific 

 bactericidal sera has come plainly into view during the 

 past ten years. Mention has already been made of the 

 methods that have been employed to check the develop- 

 ment of infections from organisms of the B. coli group 

 and closely related bacteria. The work of Sir A. E. 

 Wright upon the elevation of the opsonic index in cases 

 of local staphylococcal infections and in the case of 

 streptococcus septicaemia makes it not improbable that 

 in the case of intestinal affections clearly shown to be 

 in part dependent on staphylococcus or streptococcus 

 infection, the methods of vaccination employed by him 

 may be effective in increasing the phagocytic defenses 

 of the body against these infective agents. Whether 

 similar methods are likely to be of service in relation to 

 such cases as show the presence of well-defined chronic 

 infections dependent on anaerobic putrefactive organ- 

 isms such as B. aerogenes capsulatus it is impossible to 

 predict. It has been already mentioned that we have 

 not as yet observed any instance of chronic saccharo- 

 butyric putrefaction (due to an infection with B. aero- 

 genes capsulatus) hi which there has been a heightening 

 of the agglutination of the patient's blood with the infect- 

 ing organisms. This, however, does not prove that 

 specific antibodies are never formed through the agency 

 of these anaerobes in the intestine. There are in fact 

 some experimental observations which indicate that it 

 is possible to develop a specific agglutinating power for 

 B. aerogenes capsulatus. Whether the ability of the 



