Bacillus Histolyticus 



505 



Notwithstanding its marked ability to dissolve living mus- 

 cular tissues its proteolytic action in brain, meat, milk, serum, 

 and egg mediums is slow though fairly complete over long periods 

 of time. Weinberg and Seguin 1 found that sterile filtrates liquify 

 coagulated egg white and gelatin and Blancet Pozerski 2 and 

 Dernby and Blanc, 3 concluded that a tryptic enzyme is secreted 

 by this species. 



Weinberg and Sequin 1 also noted that sterile filtrates injected 

 intramuscularly in fairly large doses produce large hemorrhages, 

 apparently by destruction of the vascular walls and we have 

 confirmed this phenomenon by injecting guinea pigs with 2 c.c. 

 of the Berkefeld filtrate from 24 hour glucose broth cultures of 

 several of our strains including the California strain. Sterile 

 hematomas the size of a pigeon's egg generally appear within 

 several days following such injections. The blood contained 

 therein does not become hemolysed and recovery follows their 

 drainage. We have never observed the muscular tissues to dis- 

 integrate or the skin to break, however, from the injection of 

 filtrates as after the injection of living cultures. It seems ap- 

 parent that the hemorrhage induced by the soluble secretions of 

 this species plays an important role in the peculiar phenomena 

 accompanying at least experimental infection in affording a 

 suitable focus for the growth of this germ which appears rarely 

 if ever to invade the blood stream itself. 



1 Weinberg et Senguin, La Gangrane Gazeuse, Masson et Cie, Paris, 1917. 



2 Blanc et Pozerski, Comptes rend. Soc. Biol., 1920, Ixxxiii, 1343. 



3 Dernby and Blanc, Jour, of Bad., 1921, vi, 419. 



