76 



Scientific Proceedings (48). 



a general tuberculosis in this animal. Accordingly experiments 

 were instituted in the following manner: four rabbits were injected 

 for each test, two with a human type of bacillus, the other two 

 with the bovine type, in each case 1/100 mg. and 1 mg. of a culture 

 being injected into the ear vein. These four animals were bled 

 one half hour, one hour, two hours, and three hours after injection, 

 5 cu. cm. being caught in a solution of sodium citrate. There were 

 thus eight specimens taken from the two rabbits inoculated with 

 the human tubercle bacillus, and eight from the two inoculated 

 with the bovine bacillus. These sixteen specimens were injected 

 into as many guinea-pigs, and after six weeks these animals were 

 examined for tuberculosis. 



In all, six experiments of this description were successfully 

 carried out, using twenty-four rabbits and 112 pigs. In the 

 tuberculosis test, 44 of the pigs injected with "bovine blood" 

 survived, 26 of these, that is, 69 per cent., were found tuberculous. 

 Of 45 of those injected with the human virus 7 developed tuber- 

 culosis, that is, about i8j^ per cent. In almost all of these experi- 

 ments the bovine bacillus was found more frequently in the 

 circulation than the human type of bacillus. This was not the 

 case to any great extent in two of the experiments, where the 

 bovine strain was not of marked virulence. 



The conclusion is, therefore, that a certain parallelism exists 

 between the virulence of the tubercle bacillus and its persistence 

 in the circulation of the rabbit. The more virulent bovine organism 

 remains in the circulation more constantly and for a longer period 

 than the less virulent human type. The cause of this difference 

 is being studied at present. Perhaps we can generalize from this 

 fact in the case of other microorganisms. 



56 (665) 



On indican in the blood of uremic patients. 

 By NELLIS B. FOSTER. 



[From the medical service of the New York Hospital and the Labora- 

 tory of Biological Chemistry, Columbia University, at the 

 College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York.] 

 A demonstration of the constant presence in uremic blood of an 

 abnormal aromatic body such as indican would be highly signifi- 



