A BASE. 317 



The hydrochlorid is readily deliquescent, and unites with platinum 

 chlorid to form an easily soluble double salt crystallizing in needles. 



The aurochlorid, CyH^yNOj.HCl.AuClj (Au = 40.46 per cent.), is 

 difficultly soluble, and crystallizes in prisms, which melt at 176°. In 

 its melting-point and solubility (197°, Brieger, Arch, f.paihol. Anat, 

 115, 489) it agrees with its isomer from horse-flesh. In his first ex- 

 periments with the typhoid bacillus, Brieger (II., 69) obtained a basic 

 product differing in some of its characters from typhotoxin. Its 

 aurochlorid, on analysis, gave 41.91 and 41.97 per cent, of Au ; 16.06 

 per cent, of C; and 3.66 per cent, of H; while typhotoxin aurochlorid 

 gave 40.78 per cent. Au; 17.38 per cent. C ; and 3.85 per cent. H. 

 For a comparison of the reaction of these two substances, see Table I. 



In its physiological action typhotoxin differs from its isomer 

 (page 318) in that the latter produces symptoms with well marked 

 convulsions, whilst the former throws the animal into more of a 

 paralytic or lethargic condition. The action of this base has been 

 studied only on mice and guinea-pigs. It produces at first slight 

 salivation with increased respiration ; the animals lose control over 

 the muscles of the trunk and extremities and fall down helpless 

 upon their sides. The pupils become strongly dilated and cease to 

 react to light; the salivation becomes more profuse ; the rate of heart- 

 beat and of respiration gradually decreases and death follows in from 

 one to two days. Throughout the course of these symptoms the ani- 

 mals have frequent diarrhoeic evacuations, but at no time are con- 

 vulsions present. On post mortem the heart is found to be in 

 systole, the lungs are strongly hypersemic, the other internal organs 

 pale, the intestines firmly contracted and their walls pale. 



A Base (?), C^H^yNO^, was obtained by Brieger in 1886 (III., 28) 

 on working over about one hundred pounds of horse-flesh which had 

 been allowed to undergo slow putrefaction with limited access of air 

 and at a low temperature (— 9° to -f- 5°) for four months. It occurred 

 in the mercuric chlorid precipitate together with cadaverin, putrescin 

 and mydatoxin, and from these bases it was separated and isolated 

 according to the method given on page 311. 



A similar, if not identical, substance having the composition 

 CjHjjNO^, was obtained by Baginsky and Stadthagen (1890) from 

 cultures on horse-flesh, ten days at 35°, of a bacillus closely allied 

 to Finkler-Prior's and isolated from stools of cholera infantum. 

 The gold salt in its crystalline form and properties was the same as 

 Brieger's except that it possessed a somewhat higher melting-point. 

 It is possible that one or more of these isomers are homologues of leucin. 



The free substance possesses, even after most careful purification, 

 a slightly acid reaction. This acidity is removed from even a large 

 quantity of the substance by the addition of a drop of alkali. On 

 account of the acid character of the free substance Brieger does not 



