Occurrence, Etiology, Pathogenicity. 751 



i-ii ^^* disease is widely distributed in middle and northern Germany, and is 

 *A^;"i?^''?^ ^°^' "'■° ®^^t6rn Prussia alone about 30,000 cows appear to be afeected 

 (Muller), 90-98% of the cows being usually afCected in the infected herds 

 (Eaebiger), and in the corporation herds also the frequency reaches 90%. The 

 disease existed in 1901 in Thiiringia to such an extent that not a single township, 

 ■ indeed in many places not even a single stable, was spared (Pr. V.-B.). The 

 disease was reported in 1903 from almost "ivevj government district, and about 

 90% of 30,000 cattle of the East Prussian-Netherlands Society were affected. 



The general inquiry in Switzerland showed a very considerable distribution 

 of the disease, as among 4,322 cattle examined in 344 stables, 60% were found 

 to be infected. In the western part of Austria one-half of the entire number of 

 cattle are supposed to be affected (Eeichl). In Hungary it is also widely spread. 

 According to the investigation of Ladanyi at the stockyards of Budapest, 43.8% 

 out of 5,013 cattle. showed symptoms of the disease; of the improved breeds 58.9%, 

 and of the range cattle 43% proved to te affected, while all of the buffalo cows 

 were found to be healthy. According to the origin of the animals the morbidity 

 in cows from Hungary was 50.7%, from Servia 43.8%, from Bosnia 57.8%, from 

 Croatia 52.3%, besides which the disease has also been diagnosed in calves. 



Etiology. The organism considered as the cause of the 

 disease is a streptococcus chain consisting of 6-9 cocci, the in- 

 dividual cocci being enclosed in a fine capsule. 



Staining. The cocci are easily stained by aqueous anilin dyes 

 while the capsule remains unstained; by Gram's method even the cocci 

 remain unstained. 



Cultivation. The streptococci grow on the ordinary alkaline media 

 in the presence of oxygen, at body or room temperature; luxuriant 

 cultures grow especially on agar containing glycerin or urine. Gelatin 

 and coagulated blood serum are not liquefied; in bouillon a diffuse 

 turbidity develops; milk is not coagulated. Neither gas nor indol 

 form in the cultures. 



Tenacity. The streptococci are killed in cultures in one minute by corrosive 

 sublimate 1:5000, silver nitrate %%, lactic acid 2%, lysol or creolin solution 2%% 

 (Ostertag). One per cent tannin solution appears to destroy them after 20 hours, 

 while a 1%% solution of bacillol has a rapidly destructive action (De Bruin). 

 From fibrinous purulent discharge of the vaginal mucous membrane, dried on 

 small wooden sticks, the streptococci may be grown on artificial media even after 

 3% years (Heckelmann). 



Pathogenicity. Pure culture or vaginal discharge intro- 

 duced into the vagina of healthy female cattle produces in 

 from 2 to 3 days a purulent vaginal catarrh, in the course of 

 which the discharge at first (according to Thoms as early as 

 from 16 hours on) contains exclusively streptococci, later also 

 staphylococci and colon bacilli. A transmission to other animals 

 is not successful (only DeBruin reports that he succeeded in 

 transmitting it to horses, sheep, goats and hogs). 



Following the investigations of Prowazek & Halberstadter on trachoma of 

 man, Blahn found that the epithelial cells on the point of the follicular nodules 

 contain very small bodies resembling the trachoma bodies, which sometimes were 

 numerous, again few, and were enclosed in cells or free in great clumps. He con- 

 siders these bodies, which sometimes have a sickle shape, and are invariably present 

 only on one side of the nucleus, as evolution forms of a protozoon as yet unknown, 

 belonging to Prowazek 's Chlamydozoa. According to his view the disease repre- 

 sents a specific affection of the epithelia, with degeneration of the adenoid layer 

 - of the mucous membranes, probably as a result of an obstruction of the glandular 



