1889.] Physiological Action of Seeds of Abrus precatorms. 97 



Fatal Dose. — The minimal fatal dose of the globulin has not been 

 determined by us ; the smallest dose we have found kill is 0*0022 gram 

 or a dose of O'Ol gram per kilo, of body weight. 



This dose took twenty-four hours to kill ; a larger dose kills more 

 rapidly, and we have repeatedly demonstrated the fact that the 

 rapidity and intensity of the action of abrus-globulin is proportional 

 to the quantity used. This is seen in the following table of experi- 

 ments on pigeons : — 



Fatal Dose of Abrus-globulin in Pigeons. 



Weight of pigeon 

 in grams. 



Dose of globulin 

 in grams. 



Dose per kilo, of 

 body weight. 



Death occurred in 



310 



0-0031 



O'Ol 



About 18 hours. 



397 



0-15 



373 



„ 8* „ 



216 



0'2 



0-925 



K3 



>5 °4 3> 



In analysing the general symptoms produced by abrus-globulin 

 (abrus-poison) it is seen that there are no convulsions produced and 

 no definite paralysis, only a general weakening, ending gradually in 

 death. 



The fact that the poison produces oedema at the seat of injection, 

 and that death is slow, may point to the idea that the cause of death 

 is secondary to the local lesion produced by the poison, the absorption 

 of septic material occurring. This is not so, however, and for several 

 reasons. 



In the first place the local oedema is very slight in amount if the 

 dose be small, and yet death occurs. Suppuration, moreover, has not 

 occurred in any of our experiments. Moreover, if the fatal effect 

 really occurred from the absorption of septic material, we should 

 expect a rise of temperature ; the animal would be febrile. This is 

 not so ; the temperature instead of rising falls in a most remarkable 

 manner. A few observations were made on cats by Warden and 

 Waddell on this point. The animals used by us were pigeons, and the 

 temperature was taken in the rectum every twenty minutes or half 

 hour after the injection of the globulin. At the same time the number 

 of respirations per minute was counted, so that in the chart (fig. 1) 

 the respiration carve can be compared with the temperature curve. 



It will be seen from the chart that the temperature, which was 

 106"8° F. before inoculation, began to fall in less than half an hour 

 after the poison had been injected ; that this fall was gradual until 

 two hours after the inoculation, after which time there is a rapid fall 

 until death. The fall of temperature until death was from 106"8° F. 

 to 83° F. ; i.e., 23-8° F. or 12-6° C. 



VOL. XLVI. H 



