1915- 



Irish Sociclics. 



85 



DUBLIN MICROSCOPICAL CLUB. 



March 10. — The Club met at T.einster House, D. McArdle (President) 

 in the Chair. 



Prof. J. A. Scott showed some preparations made from pus derived 

 from a tumour which grew on the right side of the neck and face of the 

 Gorilla at present in the Gardens of the Royal Zoological Society of Ireland. 

 Microscopical examination of these preparations showed the case to be 

 one of actinomycosis. Treatment carried out on the lines suggested 

 by this diagnosis has greatly reduced the tumour and gives promise of 

 a complete cure. 



This diagnosis was rendered difficult by the very small size of the par- 

 ticles in the pus ; usually these are sufficiently large to be just visible to 

 the naked eye, and have a pale yellow colour in comparison with the 

 fluid in which they lie, receiving the name of sulphur granules. In the 

 present case the}^ were so small as to be only visible with a lower power, 

 but when seen had a distinct radial arrangement and characteristic 

 grouping. Some of these when separated were teased apart, and on 

 staining by Gram's method showed very plainly a mycelial structure 

 composed of very fine threads with the protoplasm very much separated, 

 giving the fibres a beaded appearance, these beads in the centre of the 

 masses appearing like micrococci. Nothing suggesting spores was observed. 

 In many cases the ends of the mycelial threads which radiate are thickened 

 like clubs, these forming the " ray " which gives the name of " ray fungus ' ' 

 to the disease, but in this case these clubs were completely absent. 



Very many forms are included in this group, all of them associated 

 with the soil. It is generally accepted that infection occurs from injury 

 to some part, generally the mouth or tongue, with straw- or coarse herbage 

 by which the mycelium is actually implanted in the tissues under the 

 skin or mucous membrane. In this situation it grows, and by stimulating 

 the tissue cells slowly produces the tumour. No method of immunizing 

 animals against the disease is known. The treatment which is successful 

 in most cases consists of the administration of some substance containing 

 a large proportion of iodine in its composition. Several such substances 

 have been used from time to time, depending on the position of the growth 

 and the animal affected. 



N. CoLGAN exhibited a series of slides illustrating the dermal deposits 

 of two Co. Dublin Holothurians, Cucumavia Hyndmani (Thompson) and 

 C. lactea (Forbes and Goodsir), the material being furnished by specimens 

 dredged recently off the Skerries islands. The first of these species is 

 rather rare in Co. Dublin waters ; the second, which usuall}'- occurs in 

 the chocolate -colon red form named Ocnus hrunnens in Forbes' s '* Brit'sh 

 Star -fishes," is quite frequent. The shape of the body deposits in C. Hynd- 

 mani was shewn to vary greatly with age. While small specimens gave 

 thin, flat plates with numerous wide perforations, much larger and pre- 

 sumably older individuals gave solid elliptical deposits in which the 

 perforations had become quite obsolete or were reduced to small shallow 

 pits. A piece of skin from one of the larger specimens with these thickened 

 deposits appeared as if covered by a layer of oblong potatoes, the pits 

 or obsolescent perforations representing the " eyes." 



A 3 



