280 GLANDERS 



once by drying, but usually loses its vitality after fourteen days 

 in the dry condition, though sometimes it lives longer. It is not 

 quickly destroyed by putrefaction, having been found to be still 

 active after remaining two or three weeks in putrefying fluids. 

 In cultures the bacilli retain their vitality for three or four 

 months, if, after growth has taken place, they are kept at the 

 temperature of the room; on the other hand, they are often 

 found to be dead at the end of two weeks when kept constantly 

 at the body temperature. They have comparatively feeble 

 resistance to heat and antiseptics. Lomer found that they were 

 killed in ten minutes in a fluid kept at 55 C., and in from two 

 to three minutes by a 5 per cent solution of carbolic acid. 

 Boiling water and the ordinarily used antiseptics are very 

 rapid and efficient disinfectants. 



We may summarise the characters of the glanders bacillus by 

 saying that in its morphological characters it resembles some- 

 what the tubercle bacillus, but is thicker, and differs widely 

 from it in its staining reactions. For its cultivation the higher 

 temperatures are necessary, and the growth on potato presents 

 most characteristic features. 



Experimental Inoculation. In horses subcutaneous injection 

 of the glanders bacillus in pure culture reproduces all the 

 important features of the disease. This fact was established at 

 a comparatively early date by Loffler and Schutz, who, after one 

 doubtful experiment, successfully inoculated two horses in this 

 way, the cultures used having been grown for several generations 

 outside the body. In a few days swellings formed at the sites 

 of inoculation, and later broke down into unhealthy -looking 

 ulcers. One of the animals died ; after a few weeks the other, 

 showing symptoms of cachexia, was killed. In both animals, in 

 addition to ulcerations on the surface with involvement of the 

 lymphatics, there were found, post mortem, nodules in the lungs, 

 softened deposits in the muscles, and also affection of the nasal 

 mucous membrane, nodules, and irregular ulcerations. The 

 ass is even more susceptible than the horse, the disease in the 

 former running a more rapid course, but with similar lesions. 

 The ass can be readily infected by simple scarification and 

 inoculation with glanders secretion, etc. (Nocard). 



Of small animals, field-mice and guinea-pigs are the most 

 susceptible. Strangely enough, house -mice and white mice 

 enjoy an almost complete immunity. In field-mice subcutaneous 

 inoculation is followed by a very rapid disease, usually leading 

 to death within eight days, the organisms becoming generalised 

 and producing numerous minute nodules, especially in the spleen, 



