196 HEMOLYS1S AND SERUM CYTOTOXIXS 



probably to be explained largely by this hemolytic property of 

 bacterial toxins. Hemoglobinuria may also be produced in the 

 same way in some instances. Intravenous injections of filtrates 

 of the saprophyte, B. megatherium, will produce hemoglobin- 

 uria in guinea-pigs, hence hemolysis is not an exclusive property 

 of pathogenic bacteria. 



HEMOLYSIS BY VEGETABLE POISONS 



A number of plant poisons are strongly hemolytic, and some 

 of them owe much of their toxicity to their effect on the erythro- 

 cytes. One group consists of the bodies often called " vege- 

 table toxalbumins, " because they seem to be proteids, and 

 includes ricin, abrin, crotin, and robin. Of these, crotin and 

 phallin are particularly actively hemolytic, while ricin, abrin, 

 and robin are more marked by their agglutinating action, hem- 

 olysis being produced only by relatively large doses. Their 

 effects vary greatly, however, according to the species of animals 

 whose blood is used. They resemble the bacterial toxins in 

 that immunity can be secured against them, and the immune 

 serum will prevent their hemolytic action. Heating the toxal- 

 bumins to 65 or 70 does not destroy the hemolytic or agglu- 

 tinating action except with phallin, but 100 does. The action 

 of these substances is not like that of the enzymes, in that it is 

 quantitative, a given amount acting on a given amount of cor- 

 puscles to which it is bound. Madsen and \Yalbum l observed 

 that red corpuscles had the power of dissociating neutral mix- 

 tures of ricin and antiricin, the ricin entering the corpuscles 

 from which it could be recovered. 2 (The general nature and 

 other properties of these substances have been considered under 

 the heading of " Phytotoxins, " in the preceding chapter.) 



Phallin, from Amanita phalloides, is considered by Kobert to be of 

 albumose nature, a " toxalbumin," and its principal effects are due to 

 its hemolytic action, which is said to be equal to or stronger than that 

 of cyclamin (Kunkel). Ford 3 found the hemolytic principle of Amanita 

 to resemble the bacterial hemolysins in acting directly upon corpuscles 

 without the presence of serum. It dissolves all varieties of erythrocytes, 

 is inactivated at 65 for one-half hour, is not inhibited by cholesterin 

 and lecithin, but is inhibited by serum and by milk, and destroyed by 

 digestive enzymes. Immune serum neutralizes this hemolytic property. 

 Besides the hemolytic poison, phallin, there is a thermostable poison 

 which is strongly toxic but not hemolytic. 4 



1 Cent. f. Bakt., 1904 (36), 242. 



m 2 According to Pascucci (Hofmeister's Beitr., 1905 (7), 457), ricin combines 

 directly with lecithin, the compound being strongly hemolytic. 



3 Jour. Infect. Diseases, 1906 (3), 191. 



4 See Ford, Jour. Exp. Med., 1906 (8), 437. 



