Use of Morphine in Botulism. 



297 



animals (treated with morphine) the animals can be saved even 

 as late as 24 hours after ingestion of toxin. 



134 (1881) 



The state of aggregation of particles of botulinus toxin. 



By J. BRONFENBRENNER and M. J. SCHLESINGER. 



[From the Department of Preventive Medicine and Hygiene, Harvard 

 Medical School, Boston, Mass.] 



The fact that one cubic centimeter of botulinus toxin with only 

 10 per cent, of solids contains at least as many as io 18 units of 

 toxin when its hydrogen-ion concentration is adjusted to about 

 P H = 4, 1 suggests that the molecules of this toxin must be very 

 small and of a comparatively simple structure. 



On the other hand we have shown 2 that saturation of the toxic 

 filtrate of the culture of B. botulinus with (NH^SC^ precipitates 

 the toxin, thus suggesting either that toxin is adsorbed by the 

 coarser particles of the precipitate, or that, contrary to the above 

 assumption, the matrix of the toxin is more complex and is capable 

 of being salted out by the (NH 4 )2S0 4 . 



In order to determine which is the case a number of experiments 

 were undertaken. While they did not yield as yet any definite 

 answer to the question of the size or the nature of the molecule of 

 botulinus toxin, they disclosed certain interesting, though not 

 as yet correlated facts concerning the properties of this extremely 

 active substance. We feel that these facts are sufficiently in- 

 teresting to justify our reporting them at this time. 



I. Crude toxin kills mice in the dose of 3 X io~ 7 c.c. If its 

 reaction is adjusted to about P H = 4 (at the temp, of 37 0 C.) its 

 potency is increased so that the M.L.D. = 3 X io~ 18 c.c. 1 If one 

 adds to such an acidified toxin a solution of pepsin (at 37 0 C), 

 already 5 minutes after the addition of pepsin the potency of 

 toxin is markedly reduced and after four hours of contact with 



1 Bronfenbrenner and Schlesinger, Proc. Soc. Exp. Biol, and Med., 1921, 

 xix, 1. 



2 Bronfenbrenner and Schlesinger, Proc. Soc. Exp. Biol, and Med., 192 i, 

 xviii, 254. 



