294 A CT1NOM YCOSIS. 



Regarding the exact relations of this organism there is 

 still doubt. Kanthack considered that it had all the 

 important characters of the actinomyces and belonged to 

 the same family, though without cultures he could not state 

 definitely that the two species were identical. He also 

 considered that the parasite was of the same nature in the 

 pale and black varieties, and that probably the latter was 

 a degenerated form of the former. Boyce and Surveyor, on 

 the other hand, described the parasite as being composed of 

 long non-branching septate filaments, and regarded it as 

 belonging to the hyphomycetes or moulds. Vincent, how- 

 ever, has obtained cultures from a case of the disease 

 occurring in Tunis, and the organism obtained, though 

 resembling the actinomyces in many respects, is a distinct 

 species. Vincent gives to it the name streptothrix Madura. 

 The chief points of difference are the following : the strepto- 

 thrix Madurae does not liquefy gelatine ; its cultures on the 

 agar media have a reddish colour ; it flourishes readily on 

 certain vegetable infusions on which the actinomyces does 

 not grow. Unlike the actinomyces again, it does not grow 

 under anaerobic conditions, and so far its inoculation on 

 animals has not been followed by any pathogenic effects. 

 The results of Vincent would, therefore, show that the two 

 organisms belong to the same genus, but are distinct species. 

 It would, however, still require to be shown that the disease 

 in the case studied by him was identical with that common 

 in India, and also that in these conditions the parasite 

 is always the same. It may also be mentioned that 

 Madura disease differs from actinomyces, not only in its 

 geographical distribution, but also in its clinical characters. 

 Its course, for example, is of an extremely chronic nature, 

 and though the local disease is incurable except by opera- 

 tion, the parasite never produces secondary lesions in 

 internal organs. Vincent also found that iodide of potas- 

 sium, which has a high value as a therapeutic agent in many 

 cases of actinomycosis, had no effect in the case studied by 

 him. 



