33 
In his recent very careful work upon the constitution of diphtheria 
poison and the relation between toxine and antitoxin, von Dungern^ 
concludes that — 
; 1. The union of diphtheria toxine and antitoxin does not proceed in 
accordance with the ammonia-boric acid scheme. 
I 2. The observed phenomena of combination are explicable only 
I upon the assumption of a complex constitution of the diphtheria 
poison. 
3. The facts find their best explanation in the action of a toxone and 
1 an epitoxonoid. Epitoxonoid is present in considerable quantitj^ in 
toxic broth. The immunizing action of apparenth^ completely neu- 
tralized toxines can therefore be explained. 
•I. Constituents of the diphtheria poison with weak affinity after 
combining with antitoxin may eventually become so firmly bound that 
this union can only be incompletely broken b}^ toxin of stronger avidity. 
The strength of the combination is of significance for the action of 
'! antitoxin. 
The claim of Arrhenius and Madsen that the toxine is a simple sub- 
stance having a weak affinit}- for the antitoxin, and that the combina- 
tion of toxine and antitoxin follows the Guldberg-Waage law, and that 
the reaction is therefore reversible, seems, in the light of the evidence 
before us, to be untenable. 
Nernst^ and Michaelis^ consider that the assumption that the reac- 
tion is reversible, at least after a veiw short period, is arbitrary and 
unsupported by evidence. In addition to von Dungern,^ as above 
cpioted, Sachs, Morgenroth,^ and others have brought forward new 
experiments to show that the reaction is not reversible, and that the 
existence of toxoids and toxones is very probable. 
The question as to the existence of toxones now seems by the work 
of Calcar, if confirmed, to be definitely settled in favor of Ehrlich’s 
views. Calcar separated from diphtheria bouillon b}’ special methods 
of filtration, through a membrane, two poisonous constituents. The 
one (Ehrlich's toxin) killed acutely; the other (Ehrlich’s toxone) pro- 
duced late paralysis and death after several weeks. 
Ehrlich and his co-workers had been able to show the existence of 
toxones only b}^ more indirect methods (partial neutralization of toxine 
«Deut. med. Woch., 1904, Xos. 8 and 9. 
&Zeit. f. Elektrochem., 10, p. 377. 
<'’Biochem. Centrlbl., 3, p. 1. 
f^Berl. klin. Woch., 41, p. 412. 
^Ibid., 41, p. 526. 
.tibid., 41, p. 1028. 
22277— .Vo. 21—05 3 
