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The Effect of the Injection of Intracellular Constituents of 

 Bacteria {Bacterial Endotoxins) on the Opsonising Action 

 of the Serum of Healthy Rabbits. 



By E. Tanner Hewlett, M.D. 



(Communicated by Prof. TV. D. Halliburton, F.E.S. Received June 5, — Eead 



June 24, 1909.) 



In a series of researches the late Dr. Allan Macfadyen studied the 

 properties of the intracellular constituents of bacteria and other organisms 

 obtained by mechanical trituration of the organisms in the presence of liquid 

 air. He showed that the cell juices thus obtained are :— 



(1) Toxic on injection into animals {e.g., B. typhosus* Spirillum cholerce,^ 

 B. suisepticus,% pneumococcus,§ and others). 



(2) Capable of inducing the formation of anti-endotoxins on injection into 

 animals {e.g., B. typhosus^ Spirillum cholerce^) which possess protective and 

 curative properties in vivo, and bacteriolytic properties in vitro. 



(3) Cause the development of agglutinins {e.g., B. typhosus** and yeastff). 

 It was thought that it might be of interest to investigate whether the intra- 

 cellular bacterial constituents are capable of inducing alteration in the 

 opsonising action of the serum of normal rabbits. 



The organisms selected were the B. typhosus, the B. tuberculosis, and the 

 31. pyogenes, var. aureus {Staphylococcus pyogenes aureus). The intracellular 

 constituents of these organisms were obtained by the Macfadyen method,!* 

 viz.. by growing the organism on surface agar in Eoux bottles, scraping off 

 the growth, suspending this in sterile water, centrifugalising and collecting 

 the bacterial paste on the walls of the centrifuge. The bacterial paste is 

 weighed so as to ascertain the amount, and then ground in the machine after 

 freezing. 



After grinding, the ground material is made up with distilled water or 

 with Ol-per-eent. sodium hydrate, so as to form a 10-per-cent. solution 



* 'Koy. Soe. Proc.,' vol. 71, 1903, p. 77 (with Sydney Eowland). 

 t ' Lancet,' 1906, vol. 2, p. 494. 



X 1 Centralbl. f. Bakt.,' Abt. I (Originate), vol. 43, 1907, p. 143. 

 § 'Brit. Med. Journ., 1906, vol. 2, p. 776. 



|| 'Boy. Soc. Proc.,' vol. 71, 1903, p. 351, and vol. 77, 1906, p. 548. 

 IT ' Lancet,' 1906. vol. 2, p. 494. 

 ** 'Lancet,' 1906, vol. 1, p. 373. 



t+ 'Centralbl. fur Bakteriol.,' Abt. I, vol. 30, 1901, p. 368. 

 \X See ' The Cell as the Unit of Life ' (Churchill, 1908), p. 274. 



2 B 2 



