390 



MALIGNANT (EDEMA 



peculiar heavy, but not putrid, odour. The bacillus, which was 

 obtained in pure culture, was present in enormous numbers in 

 the affected tissues, attended by cellular necrosis, serous 

 exudation, and at places much leucocytic emigration. The 

 picture, in short, corresponded with that seen on inoculating a 

 guinea-pig with a pure culture. The term "malignant oedema" 

 should be limited in its application to cases in which the 

 bacillus in question is present. In most of these there is a 

 mixed infection ; in some this bacillus may be present alone. 

 This bacillus has a very widespread distribution in nature, 



being present in garden 

 soil, dung, and various 

 putrefying animal fluids ; 

 and it is by contamination 

 of lacerated wounds by such 

 substances that the disease 

 is usually set up in the 

 human subject. Malignant 

 oedema can be readily pro- 

 duced by inoculating sus- 

 ceptible animals, such as 

 guinea-pigs, with garden 

 soil. The bacillus is also 

 of ten present in the intestine 

 of man and animals, and has 

 been described as being 

 FIG. 130. Bacillus of malignant oedema, present in some gangrenous 



showing spores. From a culture in 

 glucose agar, incubated for three days 

 at 37 C. 

 Stained with weak ca'rbol-fuchsin. x 1000. 



conditions originating in 

 connection with the in- 

 testine in the human sub- 

 ject. 



Microscopical Characters. The bacillus of malignant oedema 

 is a comparatively large organism, being slightly less than 1 /A 

 in thickness, that is, thinner than the anthrax bacillus. It 

 occurs in the form of single rods 3 /x to 10 ^ in length, but both 

 in the tissues and in cultures in fluids it frequently grows out 

 into long filaments, which may be uniform throughout or 

 segmented at irregular intervals. In cultures on solid media it 

 chiefly occurs in the form of shorter rods with somewhat rounded 

 ends. The rods are motile, possessing several laterally placed 

 flagella, but in a given specimen, as a rule, only a few bacilli 

 show active movement. Under suitable conditions they form 

 spores which are usually near the centre of the rods and have an 

 oval shape, their thickness somewhat exceeding that of the 



