﻿The 
  Biological 
  Significance 
  of 
  Anaphylaxis. 
  129 
  

  

  Osborne 
  and 
  Wells* 
  have 
  demonstrated 
  typical 
  anaphylaxis 
  to 
  the 
  crystalline 
  

   proteins 
  from 
  various 
  seeds, 
  and 
  to 
  the 
  crystallised 
  albumin 
  from 
  white 
  of 
  

   egg.f 
  Hartley 
  and 
  IJ 
  observed 
  it 
  with 
  a 
  very 
  highly 
  purified 
  sample 
  of 
  

   crystallized 
  albumin 
  from 
  horse-serum. 
  Indeed, 
  it 
  would 
  seem 
  that 
  

   purification 
  of 
  the 
  protein 
  diminishes 
  the 
  effective 
  dose. 
  Wells 
  produced 
  

   anaphylaxis 
  in 
  a 
  guinea-pig 
  with 
  a 
  preparatory 
  injection 
  of 
  1/20,000 
  mgrm. 
  

   of 
  crystallised 
  egg-albumin, 
  while 
  1/20 
  mgrm. 
  of 
  the 
  same 
  prepraration 
  

   sufficed 
  to 
  kill 
  a 
  guinea-pig 
  rendered 
  anaphylactic 
  to 
  it. 
  

  

  While 
  purification 
  does 
  not 
  diminish 
  the 
  antigenic 
  efficiency, 
  any 
  denaturat- 
  

   ing 
  influence 
  rapidly 
  destroys 
  it. 
  Proteins 
  which 
  are 
  coagulable 
  by 
  heat 
  lose 
  

   the 
  action 
  when 
  their 
  solutions 
  are 
  boiled 
  ; 
  others, 
  like 
  casein, 
  which 
  are 
  

   not 
  coagulable, 
  retain 
  their 
  antigenic 
  properties 
  after 
  boiling. 
  The 
  earlier 
  

   products 
  of 
  digestive 
  hydrolysis 
  probably 
  retain 
  the 
  property 
  to 
  some 
  extent, 
  

   but 
  it 
  rapidly 
  disappears 
  as 
  digestion 
  proceeds, 
  and 
  is 
  completely 
  lacking 
  in 
  

   the 
  free 
  amino-acids. 
  It 
  is 
  of 
  special 
  interest 
  to 
  note 
  that 
  racemization 
  of 
  a 
  

   protein, 
  by 
  gentle 
  warming 
  with 
  alkali, 
  completely 
  destroys 
  its 
  antigenic 
  

   activity 
  (Ten 
  Broek§). 
  

  

  We 
  have 
  seen 
  that 
  the 
  sensitiveness 
  is 
  highly 
  specific. 
  Injection 
  of 
  

  

  blood 
  serum, 
  for 
  example, 
  produces 
  anaphylaxis 
  to 
  serum 
  from 
  the 
  same 
  

  

  species, 
  but 
  no 
  abnormal 
  sensitiveness 
  to 
  that 
  from 
  others 
  ; 
  at 
  most, 
  a 
  trace 
  

  

  of 
  sensitiveness 
  to 
  serum 
  from 
  closely 
  related 
  species 
  can 
  be 
  detected. 
  The 
  

  

  reaction 
  discriminates, 
  however, 
  not 
  only 
  between 
  substances 
  from 
  different 
  

  

  species, 
  but 
  between 
  the 
  constituents 
  of 
  different 
  organs 
  from 
  the 
  same 
  

  

  species, 
  and 
  finally 
  between 
  different 
  pure 
  proteins 
  from 
  the 
  same 
  organ 
  or 
  

  

  tissue, 
  as 
  well 
  as 
  between 
  corresponding 
  pure 
  proteins 
  from 
  different 
  species. 
  

  

  Wells|| 
  found 
  that 
  each 
  of 
  the 
  five 
  proteins 
  from 
  the 
  hen's 
  egg 
  could 
  produce 
  

  

  a 
  separate 
  and 
  more 
  or 
  less 
  specific 
  anaphylaxis 
  in 
  the 
  guinea-pig. 
  Hartley 
  

  

  and 
  I 
  (loc. 
  cit.) 
  found 
  that 
  anaphylaxis 
  discriminated 
  between 
  the 
  three 
  

  

  proteins 
  separable 
  from 
  horse 
  serum. 
  A 
  guinea-pig 
  which 
  received 
  a 
  

  

  preparatory 
  injection 
  of 
  the 
  pure 
  euglobulin 
  became 
  sensitive 
  to 
  this, 
  but 
  

  

  remained 
  indifferent 
  to 
  the 
  pure 
  albumin, 
  and 
  vice 
  versd. 
  If 
  the 
  animal 
  

  

  received 
  a 
  small 
  preparatory 
  injection 
  of 
  the 
  whole 
  serum, 
  the 
  sensitiveness 
  

  

  to 
  euglobulin 
  appeared 
  first 
  (8-10 
  days), 
  that 
  to 
  albumin 
  only 
  after 
  an 
  

  

  interval 
  about 
  twice 
  as 
  long 
  (16-20 
  days). 
  Even 
  between 
  the 
  two 
  globulins, 
  

  

  the 
  so-called 
  eu- 
  and 
  pseudo-globulins, 
  the 
  discrimination 
  was 
  clear, 
  though 
  

  

  less 
  rigid, 
  possibly 
  on 
  account 
  of 
  the 
  difficulty 
  of 
  purification. 
  

  

  * 
  ' 
  Journ. 
  Infect. 
  Dis.,' 
  vol. 
  8, 
  p. 
  66 
  (1911) 
  ; 
  vol. 
  12, 
  p. 
  341 
  (1913). 
  

  

  + 
  ' 
  Journ. 
  Infect. 
  Dis.,' 
  vol. 
  5, 
  p. 
  449 
  (1908). 
  

  

  t 
  ' 
  Biochem. 
  Journ.,' 
  vol. 
  10, 
  p. 
  408 
  (1916). 
  

  

  § 
  'Journ. 
  Biol. 
  Chem.,' 
  vol. 
  17, 
  p. 
  369 
  (1914). 
  

  

  || 
  1 
  Journ. 
  Infect. 
  Dis.,' 
  vol. 
  9, 
  p. 
  147 
  (1911). 
  

  

  