126 PROTEIN THERAPY 



in pneumonia, but the occasional abrupt termination of the disease, 

 the destruction of the invading parasite, is an additional factor that 

 must be accounted for. 



That foreign protein injections have an influence on the course of a 

 sepsis even in experimental animals has recently been demonstrated by 

 Weichardt. In a series of mice injected with streptococci he found 

 that if injections were made before the streptococci were injected, or 

 as late as 24 hours after the injection, there was no appreciable differ- 

 ence between the protein and the control animals ; if the foreign protein 

 was injected from 4 to 8 hours after the infecting dose of streptococci 

 a definite effect on the duration of life of the mouse was apparent. 



It seems probable that in this condition the effect on the leukocytes 

 and on the antibody concentration is of greater importance than in the 

 disease processes heretofore discussed. Where the body has been in- 

 fected for some time the cells have as a rule become sensitized, have 

 within them an increased amount of receptors, fixed antibodies. If 

 these, as a result of some "shock," are thrown into the circulation the 

 body cells will become less sensitive, not being able to fix the same 

 amount of antigen; on the other hand the antibodies now free in the 

 blood stream are able to affect the bacteria. The augmentation of the 

 agglutinin and opsonin titers in particular will be of value in clumping 

 the bacteria so that they will tend to accumulate in the great filtering 

 centers of the blood stream such as the spleen, bone marrow, liver, 

 etc. (Bull.) 



In addition to this fact we find that the coincident effect on the 

 leukocytes in the reaction following the nonspecific reagents is a 

 primary leukopenia that lasts for a variable period of time, but 

 usually for several hours. This does not represent a destruction of 

 leukocytes, but merely the accumulation of the cells in the internal 

 organs lungs, liver, spleen, bone marrow, etc. 



We deal here with two factors that by simple mathematical reason- 

 ing (the increase of proximity) favor phagocytic destruction of bac- 

 teria the accumulation of bacteria, clumped and opsonized, in the 

 blood filters the accumulation of polymorphonuclear leukocytes in 

 the same locations. 



While these processes are operative, the direct stimulation of the 

 hematopoietic organs may be of value. The proliferation of leukocytes 

 as indicated by the number of young forms (Arneth count) that are 

 to be observed in the circulation after nonspecific reactions would 

 mean that where the bacteria have accumulated and clumped the 

 bone marrow, spleen and liver these younger leukocytes, pre- 

 sumably active and of enhanced phagocytic power, would encounter 

 the invading organisms and engulf them. 



If we survey the mechanism in the various pathological processes 

 that we encounter, in strictly local inflammations (bubo) , in localized 

 lymphatic infections (typhoid), in localized organ involvement 



