102 ACTINOMYCOSIS 



of the scale the typical bovine organism, a sphere 

 of radiate, closely-set, clubbed filaments, strongly 

 stained by Gram's method, and showing in the centre 

 of the mass little or no trace of mycelium, and at 

 the other a radiating mass of long, branching fila- 

 ments, staining by Gram's method, and showing 

 little or no trace of clubs which remain unstained. 

 All stages intermediate between these may be found 

 in different cases of human actinomycosis, and even 

 in different abscesses from the same case. 



Fig. 106 shows a section of pus from a case of 

 human actinomycosis, in which the organism is 

 intermediate in character. The dark trilobed mass 

 is a strongly, stained network of filaments lying 

 imbedded in pus cells. At the periphery individual 

 filaments may be distinguished, and also especially 

 in the right lobe many clubs from which the stain 

 has intentionally been only partially removed. 



The organism has been successfully inoculated. 



It usually spreads in the body by direct growth 

 through the tissues, advancing from some centre 

 where it has become established. It may also 

 be distributed by the lymph and blood streams ; 

 the former is the more common. The symptoms to 

 which it gives rise are very varied, and depend on 

 the parts of the body affected. 



