222 TRANSACTIONS LIVERPOOL BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 



remarked that no close relationship between human and 

 piscine tubercle has yet been proven, and that no work 

 has been quoted as yet bearing upon acid-fast bacilli in 

 salt-water fish. Only one paper has been found bearing 

 on this point, by, von Betegh, of Fiume, and his 

 communication deals with experimental fish, and not 

 with the natural occurrence in fish. 



He injected varying amounts of an emulsion of a 

 virulent culture of fish tubercle bacilli into six salt-water 

 fish intraperitoneally or intramuscularly. The fish 

 chosen were three Sparus annularis, two Mugil cepJialus 

 and one Serranus gadus. One Spar us annularis injected 

 intramuscularly with 0'2 c.c. of the tubercle emulsion 

 twenty-two days after the inoculation presented a small 

 tumour at the site of injection. When this was incised 

 it was found to consist of a sinus of pus and blood 

 containing acid-fast bacilli in large clumps. At the 

 bottom of the sinus a tubercular nodule was found 

 showing giant cells. 



The Serranus gadus injected intraperitoneally with 

 0'2 c.c. of the emulsion developed tuberculosis of the 

 swim bladder. All the other organs were found to be 

 normal. None of the other fish injected showed any 

 symptoms. 



Present Investigation. 



In November, 1912, a portion of a cod obtained at 

 Fleetwood was sent for bacteriological examination. The 

 surface of the fish presented six dark-coloured areas 

 suggestive of lupus in the human subject, and varying 

 in size from a threepenny-piece to that of a florin. 



After a thorough washing with sterile saline, an 

 aseptic instrument was employed to scrape the patches 

 thoroughly. The resulting debris was deposited in three 

 bottles labelled A, B and C. 



