12 



SCIENCE. 



[X. S. Vol. XVIU. Xo. 444. 



to serve the needs of physiological processes 

 of nutrition. 



Snake serum protection from venom had 

 previously been observed by Phisalix and 

 Bertraud, who endeavored to explain the 

 phenomenon by supposing that antiveudn 

 was produced by the absorption of venom 

 into the circulation of those animals. Ac- 

 cording to their view, the serum contains 

 venom and antivenin; the first easily de- 

 stroyed by heat, the second more resistant. 

 Heating of the serum, while abolishing the 

 venom activity, leaves that of the antivenin 

 unimpaired, whence its protective action. 

 There is something highly artificial in 

 this explanation, which agrees, moreover, 

 very badly with the facts. First, venom 

 is destroyed at a much higher temperature 

 than antivenin ; second, the toxin and anti- 

 toxin of venom, when brought together, 

 whether in the circulation or in a test-tube, 

 tend to combine and neutralize each other ; 

 and third, it is possible by replacement ex- 

 periments in vitro to demonstrate the occu- 

 pation of the receptors by the neurotoxin 

 of serum and the consequent exclusion of 

 the neurotoxic constituent of venom. 



Tou will, I trust, pardon me for bringing 

 before you a subject of such purely theo- 

 retical interest. My object in doing so is 

 to indicate the aid which the chemical idea 

 of cell and toxine unions is bringing into 

 toxicology. But I shall not need to apolo- 

 gize deeply for this liberty, since in it may 

 be detected a purpose in pointing the way 

 along which pharmacology and later thera- 

 peutics may be conceived to pass. 



We have now traversed a considerable 

 territory and one not wholly free from 

 rough places. But the commanding posi- 

 tion which we have reached, and the 

 breadth of view into the nature of patho- 

 logical processes which has been seciired, 

 justify, I trust, the undertaking. But 

 having proceeded so far, it were vain to 



turn back until we have examined another. 

 field just opened up to physiological and 

 pathological investigation, at the entrance 

 of which we stand. 



That organs protected from decomposi- 

 tion tend to undergo solution by a process 

 of self-digestion was first accurately shown 

 by Salkowsky in 1882. Within the last 

 two years, and chiefly through the labors 

 of Jacoby and Conradi, interest in this 

 subject has been revived, and a number of 

 important facts, bearing upon physiolog- 

 ical and pathological processes discovered. 

 Autolysis, as the process is now called, has 

 been studied from many different sides : the 

 nature and the distribution of the active 

 ferments ; their multiplicity and specificity ; 

 their influence upon the coagulability of 

 the blood, upon bacterial life, upon cellular 

 degeneration under physiological condi- 

 tions, and upon the resolution and absorp- 

 tion of pathological products, formations 

 and exudates. These studies have already 

 shown that in the intracellular ferments 

 causing autolysis we possess a most impor- 

 tant and potent series of agents which come 

 into play under both phj'siological and 

 pathological conditions. 



All that is required to convince oneself 

 of the phenomenon of autolysis is to place 

 a portion of the liver or other organ, or a 

 quantity of exudate, under conditions pro- 

 tected from decomposition and maintained 

 at blood heat, when digestion will proceed. 

 Care must be exercised to avoid iising 

 means of preventing putrefaction that may 

 injure unduly the ferments. Two kinds of 

 autolj'sis are now distinguished: (a) Anti- 

 septic, in which it proceeds under chloro- 

 form or toluol, and (ft) aseptic, in which 

 the organs are exposed in a sterile condi- 

 tion. Manifestly only the first method is 

 applicable to certain pathological products 

 iu which bacteria are present. As a result 

 of this self-digestion, the coagulable al- 



