504 



Scientific Proceedings (132) 



Kendall, Day and Walker 7 and Kahn 8 were inclined to deny 

 fermentation of sugars, and a more critical study of our five 

 strains shows clearly that they ferment neither glucose, levulose, 

 maltose, lactose, saccharose, salicin, glycerol nor inulin. That is, 

 there is neither increase of hydrogen ion concentration nor con- 

 siderable gas production. 



B. histolyticus is thus the third sporulating anaerobe failing 

 to derive its carbon from any of the commonly tested carbohy- 

 drates, glucosides or alcohols, the other two being B. tetarii and 

 B. putrificus. 



The following table summarizes the outstanding differences 

 between these three non-fermentative species of sporulating 

 anaerobes : 





Morphology of 

 spores 



Tyrosin crystal 



Culture filtrates 



B. histolyticus 



Subterminal, oval 



Formed 



Lytic 



B. tetani 



Terminal, round 



Not formed 



Non lytic but 

 powerfully tetano- 

 spastic 



B. putrificus 



Terminal, round 



Not formed 



Harmless 



249 (2209) 



A note on the mechanism of the peculiar lesions produced by 

 bacillus histolyticus. 



By IVAN C. HALL and EMELIA PETERSON. 



[From the Department of Bacteriology and Experimental Path- 

 ology, University of California, Berkeley, California.} 



B. histolyticus was first described by Weinberg and Seguin 1 

 in 1915 as an obligate anaerobe from war wound infections in 

 which is may display a remarkable and peculiar lytic activity. 

 Pure virulent cultures injected intramuscularly into guinea pigs 

 literally digest the flesh from the bones, hence the name — his- 

 tolyticus. 



7 Kendall, Day and Walker, Jour. Inf. Bis., 1922, xxx, 141. 



8 Kahn, Jour. Med, Res., 1922, xliii, 155. 



•Weinberg et Senguin, Co?nptes rend. Acad, des Sc., 191G, clxiii, 449. 



