GENERAL PROPERTIES AND ACTIONS OF THE VENOM. 



81 



We tested the effect of venom on only one eel; this animal, which weighed 

 100 grams, was not affected by the inj ection of 0. 1 c.c. of fresh venom. Whether 

 this is nearly the minimal lethal dose we can not state. 



The fundulus (F. majalis) was the only member of the fish family in which 

 the influence of venom was tested. We found that 0.1 c.c. of fresh venom was 

 the minimal lethal dose for these animals. Since the fundulus is a small fish 

 weighing probably 30 grams, it is evident that the lethal dose pro kilogram 

 would be very large, possibly 3 c.c. of venom. 



Our investigations on invertebrate animals indicate that these animals are 

 immune to heloderma venom, or, if not immune, they at least possess a resist- 

 ance enormously greater than vertebrate animals. We injected individuals of 

 Sycotopus canaliculatus, Limulus, Nereis vivens, Phascolosoma gouldii, Asterias 

 forbesii, Mnemiopsis leidyi, and Gonionemus murbachii, without being able to 

 produce evident symptoms in any of these animals, although we injected them 

 with doses sufficient to kill more than 50 times the same weight of guinea-pig. 

 We also demonstrated in the case of Gonionemus that animals immersed in sea- 

 water containing 5 per cent of sterile venom continued their swimming move- 

 ments unchanged for many hours and died only after a length of time sufficient 

 for bacterial decomposition to render the sea-water unsuitable. Controls 

 placed in sea-water plus 5 per cent of sterile human saliva died somewhat later, 

 but as the sea-water plus venom contained far more decomposable material 

 than the sea-water plus saliva, no conclusion concerning the toxicity of venom 

 for Gonionemus could be drawn from this circumstance. We likewise found 

 that fertilized sea-urchin and starfish eggs placed in sea-water containing 3 to 

 7 per cent of venom continued to develop and formed a number of swimming 

 gastrulse. That the number which reached this stage in the venom solution 

 was considerably less than in controls is not surprising, when we consider the 

 large amount of organic matter and the consequent putrefactive changes tak- 

 ing place in the sea-water containing venom. 



Maximum quantilies of venom injected* into invertebrates. 



TOXICITY OF THE ORGANS AND EXCRETIONS OF HELODERMA. 



Suspensions of the various organs of the Heloderma were injected in order 

 to determine whether any organ other than the venom gland secreted or held 

 the venom. The various organs tested were the liver, kidney, spleen, pancreas, 

 and lachrymal gland (?) . (This latter was a gland which lay on the lower por- 

 tion of the eye-socket.) The bile, urine, and blood-serum were also tested. 



•Where in our report the dose of venom is given in volume and not in weight, fresh venom was used; otherwise, 

 dried venom. 



