THE ACTINOMYCOSES 



2137 



grains, which are larger than those of the ordinary actinomycosis, 

 while they are less numerous in the pus. Microscopically they show 

 a tangle of filaments longer and larger than those of ordinary 

 nocardias, between which lie micrococcal-like debris. They never 

 show clubs at the periphery, and do not grow on solid media like 

 gelatine. They grow quickly in broth, forming a skin on the 

 surface. Cultures on serum give clavate forms like the diphtheria 

 bacilli. 



The fungus causing the above conditions was named Nocardia 

 ponceti by Verdun in 1913, and may be a synonym for N. krausei 

 (Chester, 1901) for the following reasons: — 



A. The pseudomycetomatous condition of Poncet does not 



differ from the definition of actinomycosis given at the 

 commencement of this paper. 



B. N. ponceti only differs from A^. krausei in the following 



details :^ — 



1. Broth is rendered t^irbid and has a had odour, but 



Foulerton has pointed out that this turbidity, 

 together with the odour which was described as 

 being associated with these growths, may have been 

 due to the pus not being collected aseptically, and 

 therefore the turbidity and odour may have been 

 due to contamination, as in addition to these char- 

 acters N. ponceti forms a typical puff-ball, just like 

 N. krausei, in which the turbidity and odour are 

 absent. 



2. According to Verdun, it does not grow on agar. It is 



not known whether N. krausei grows on plain agar, but 

 it can grow on glycerine agar and (according to some 

 authors) on glucose agar. 



C. They resemble each other in: — 



I. Morphology. 



3. They both possess clavate forms like the diphtheria 



bacilli. 



3. Both grow on serum. 



4. Neither grows on gelatine. 



Other reactions are given for one, but not for both organisms, 

 and are, therefore, useless for purposes of comparison. 



We therefore, at present, see no reason why N. ponceti should be 

 considered as a species distinct from the older N. krausei, of which its 

 name becomes a synonym. 



7. Nocardia somaliensis. — Bouffard observed two cases of a myce- 

 toma at Jibouti, in French Somaliland, which appears to be peculiar 

 both in its histological appearances and in its cultural characters. 

 Brumpt, in 1906, classified this fungus in his new genus, Indiella 

 Brumpt, 1906, calling it /. somaliensis and pointing out that, 

 judging by the descriptions given by older writers in India of the 

 macroscopical appearances of some of the ochroid varieties of 



