THE SPECIFIC CURE OF YAWS. 435 



Levaditi states that monkeys immunized against yaws do not acquire any 

 immunity for syphilis, but monkeys immunized against syphilis acquire partial 

 immunization for frambcesia. Ashburn and Craig found that monkeys of the 

 species Cynomolgus philippinensis Geoff, are susceptible to yaws, but not to syphilis. 



C'astellani applied the Bordet-Gengou complement fixation reaction to yaws 

 and concluded from his experiments that it was possible to demonstrate the 

 existence of specific yaws antibodies and antigen. The technique he employed 

 was similar to the usual one recommended by Wassermann, Neisser and Bruck. 

 Goat's corpuscles and rabbit's haemolytic serum were used. When extracts of 

 yaws papules were added to serum from monkeys which had been inoculated 

 successfully with yaws, the reaction was positive. When the reaction 'was per- 

 formed with extract of syphilitic condylomata, or extract of a primary syphilitic 

 sore (in place of an extract of yaws papules) and with yaws serum, the reaction 

 was negative; also, when performed with extract of yaws papules and with serum 

 from a monkey immunized for syphilis, the reaction was negative. From these 

 and other experiments, C'astellani concluded that it is possible to detect specific 

 antigen in the yaws papules and in the spleens of cases of yaws; and specific yaws 

 antibodies in the blood of monkeys treated by inoculation with yaws material ; 

 also that yaws antibodies and antigen are different from syphilitic antibodies 

 and antigen, and therefore syphilis and yaws differ specifically. 



Bowman, in this laboratory, also performed a few experiments with the com- 

 plement binding reaction in cases of ayaws and syphilis. He found in the usual 

 way as suggested by Landsteiner, Neisser and Poetzl, that when an extract of 

 guinea pig's heart was added to the serum from a ease of syphilis, the reaction 

 was positive. Red blood cells of the ox and immune haemolytic rabbit serum 

 were employed. On the contrary, when the extract of the guinea pig's heart was 

 added to a serum from a human case of yaws, the reaction was negative. When 

 extract of yaws papules was added to serum from yaws patients', the reaction 

 was positive. Bowman concludes that the serum from cases of yaws does not 

 bind complement when the extract from a guinea pig's heart is used, and that 

 his experiments furnish additional evidence of the nonidentity of syphilis and 

 yaws. 



Hoffman, on the other hand, reported a case of yaws in which Blumenthal found 

 the Wassermann reaction positive. Ziemann did not think the diagnosis of this 

 case definite. 



There seems little doubt but that cases of syphilis have sometimes been diag- 

 nosed as those of yaws, and in some of the recent literature pictures are found 

 of cases diagnosed as yaws in which the lesions appear to resemble rather those 

 of syphilis and in which the diagnosis of yaws from the pictures would seem hardly 

 justified. 



While this article was in the course of preparation, H. Nichols' articles in the 

 "Journal of Experimental Medicine" and "Journal of the American Medical As- 

 sociation" were received. Nichols reports that rabbits can be infected in the 

 testicle with the spirochaetse of yaws, and that the complement fixation reaction 

 has been tried on rabbits so infected and has been positive in several cases. 3 In 

 the experiment he employed acetone insoluble liver extract as antigen, and the 

 human corpuscle and rabbit haemolytic system. On the other hand, the reaction 

 failed in his hands in the case of a negro suffering from yaws and in two monkeys 

 infected with the same disease. 



Bruck reported a positive Wassermann reaction in a patient who gave a history 



3 He also reports the favorable influence of dioxy-diamido-arsenobenzol on the 

 experimental lesions produced in the testicles of four of these rabbits. 



