﻿Actinomyces according to Wright. 



Streptothrix freeri according to Musgrave and Clegg. 



Man and lower animals 



Varies in the different media. 



Sometimes forms, clubs .. 



All strains of the micro-organism stain well by Gram's 

 method with the exception of one. Smear preparation 

 from cultures of ten cases were not found acid-fast 

 toward Gabbet's decolorizing solution after staining 

 with carbol fuchsin. 



Anaerobic preferences 



Growth occurs in bouillon in the form of solid, whitish 

 masses at the bottom of the tube ; there is never 

 growth at the surface. When first isolated from the 

 lesions these masses of growth appear in the form of 

 nodular, irregular, spherical structures, often coherent 

 to one another and forming mulberry-like masses. 

 Under continued cultivation most of the strains of the 

 microorganism grow in the form of flaky, friable, 

 amorphous 'masses, which in some instances after 

 some days in the incubator became transformed into 

 stringy, viscid material. One strain after months of 

 cultivation still retained its mulberry like character. 

 Medium not clouded. 



Tubes were inoculated with fourteen strains and main- 

 tained under both' anaerobic and aerobic conditions. 

 Some slight or doubtful growth was abserved on six. 



Fourteen strains were planted and all except two were 

 observed under both anaerobic and aerobic conditions ; 

 in no instance was anything like a luxurient growth 

 obtained. 



Cultures of five strains were placed under anaerobic con- 

 ditions. In no instance was evidence of growth ob- 

 tained except in one tube, in which there might have 

 been a slight growth. 



In some instances a very slight growth appeared, in 

 others none. 



..do.. 



.do. 



Man ; foot. 



Long, branching filaments, 2 to 7 u, in diameter. Trans- 

 verse segments are shown of various lengths from 

 coccoid to 10 u in length. Branching occurs as 

 lateral hyphae developing from the segments. The fil- 

 aments have a definite wall. Spores have not been 

 observed. 



Smear preparation from lesions and cultures from 5 

 days' to 2 months' old stained by Ziehl-Neelson's 

 method showed many acid-fast portions. These were 

 also alcohol-fast. Stain well by Gram's method. 



Obligative aerobic. Growth appears after 3 days as 

 dry, opaque, discrete colonies. No liquefaction. Aft- 

 er 3 months medium becomes slightly darkened. 

 Stab cultures : No growth along needle tract. 



Appears after 3 days as a dry, smooth, opaque and 

 slightly raised growth ; at first a porcelain white, 

 which later develops a delicate pink color. No pig- 

 mentation of medium. 



Growth occurs after 3 days as flat particles on the 

 surface of the medium. These produce in time a 

 delicate, pink color, and on shaking the tube adhere 

 to its sides. As the growth proceeds a granular mass 

 collects in the bottom of the tube, this mass is more 

 or less coherent. Medium does not become cloudy 

 but in time becomes darkened. 



Growth appears after 3 days on surface of medium as 

 flat, dry-appearing particles. These later become 

 confluent, forming a heaped-up, pinkish-yellow mass. 

 No reaction occurs in- medium until after second 

 week when the color gradually fades but does not 

 become red. This decolorization begins at the bot- 

 tom of the tube. Milk is not coagulated. 



Growth appears as small, pinkish colonies, later raised 

 and becoming confluent ; after a few days the growth 

 assumes a heaped-up appearance resembling a mass 

 of yellow curls. Medium becomes moist and dark. 



Growth similar to bouillon. 



Growth appears after 3 days smooth and of a delicate 

 pink color. Growth does not change character of me- 

 dium after 3 weeks' incubation. 



Growth appears after 3 days, later becomes luxuriant 

 with a heaped-up and wrinkled appearance. The 

 center assumes a pinkish-yellow color, with a grad- 

 ual elimination to a delicate pink and to a' white 

 periphery. Stab cultures show only surface growth 

 with same pigment characteristics. 



Grows well, appearing after 3 days as a raised, heaped- 

 up, moist growth ; produces a yellow pigment in 

 center, with a pale periphery. 



Growth observed practically only at 37° C. Resistance 

 to drying showed that the microorganism survived 

 longer on plain surfaces than in culture media, 50 

 days compared with 6 to 10 days according to strain 

 used. Thermal death point 60° to 64° C. for 10 to 11 

 minutes. 



Guinea pigs and rabbits were mostly used in these ino- 

 culations. The results were not constant ; with some 

 stains typical lesions were produced which were ana- 

 tomically and histologically identical with those of 

 actinomycosis. 



Is killed at an exposure to 70° C. for 15 minutes. 



Intraperitoneal inoculations of guinea pigs, monkeys, 

 and dogs with material from lesions and from cul- 

 tures in nearly every case produced processes result- 

 ing in death after two weeks. Rabbits and pigeons 

 were not affected other than by the production of small 

 nodules at site of inoculations in subcutaneous injec- 

 tion ; these soon underwent resolution and healed. No 

 progressive lesions were produced by subcutaneous 

 inoculations. In monkeys inoculated in the foot with 

 cultures extensive lesions were produced anatomic- 

 ally resembling Madura foot. Pure cultures were 

 obtained in every instance from experimental lesions. 



