11
Tuberculosis in Camels.
41. In my letter No. 108 C., dated the 16th January 1906, I reported to
the Inspector General, Civil Veterinary Department, the fact that a camel
received at Bareilly on November 22nd, 1905, in very poor condition,
supposed to be the subject of Camel Trypanosomiasis and previously under
observation for a period of 51 days, had suddenly succumbed. At the autopsy,
conducted immediately after death, extensive pathological changes were
observed in the lungs and the post-tracheal glands, due to the presence of
what appeared to be tuberculosis. This subject is still under investigation,
as it is one of considerable interest, the casual agent, in the first instance, differ-
ing considerably from the bacilli found in human, bovine and avian tuber-
culosis. Guinea pigs inoculated with material from the lung of the affected
animal succumbed to general tuberculosis after periods of 114 and 96 days,
respectively. This series is being continued to obtain further results.
Glanders.
42. During the latter part of 1905 and the early portion of the present
year, a certain number of cases in equines were observed the symptoms of which
simulated true glanders, but which failed to react to approved Mallein. Guinea
pigs inoculated by the Strauss method, either failed to give any marked re-
action, or when such was present, the results passed off without producing serious
symptoms, until a much later date. Death, however, eventually occurred in
about 43 days, instead of in from 8 to 15, as in the case of virulent glanders.
The organism, obtained from material received from the Bombay Vete rinary Col-
lege, when cultures were made at Bareilly and later at Muktesar. resembled
somewhat the B. Mallei, but was shorter and not so wide. After passage
through a number of equines the Bombay Bacillus became much more viru-
lent, and the cultures which at first failed to produce a brown colour on
potato, finally did so, the colour produced being of the same hue or even
slightly darker than the growth of the B. Mallei. Further, Mallein in 1.0
c. c. doses prepared from the Bombay organism, and injected into a pony, the
subject of true glanders, produced a thermal and a local reaction at the
seat of injection.
From the above observations, it would appear that in this country the
virulence of the B. Mallei may become reduced, owing to some cause or
causes not yet determined, and that under some conditions, an animal suffer-
ing from a mitigated form of disease may fail to exhibit a reaction when
injected with approved Mallein. This investigation is being continued and
will be the subject of a full report when the important results observed have
been thoroughly studied.
Tuberculine.
43. On the 11th September 1902, tuberculine was prepared in ordinary
glycerine, beef bouillon from a cultivation of B. Tuberculosis Bovis received
from Berlin. The flask containing the bouillon culture was kept in an incuba-
tor at 37°C. for a period of over six weeks. The contents of the flask were
sterilized three times at 100°C. for 20 minutes on each occasion, then filtered
through paper and evaporated over a boiling " bain-marie " to one-tenth of
its original bulk. The residue was then placed in a tightly fitting brown
glass stoppered bottle without added carbolic acid and was kept in the dark,
at room temperature for a period of four years. On the 4th August 1905, the
contents of the bottle were examined, then it was observed that numerous
round white balls were present measuring up to two millimetres in diameter.
On microscopical examination, these balls were found to consist of bacilli
massed together, and when stained with Zhiel and later decolourised with 30
per cent. nitric acid and counter-stained with Methyl. Blue, the whole of the
bacilli were found to have retained the red colour, and corresponded exactly
with the B. Tuberculosis.
Guinea pigs, inoculated on the 4th August 1905, were found to be perfectly
healthy when destroyed on the 21st January 1906, and a third guinea
pig, inoculated intraperitoneally with 1.0 c. c. of fluid, containing a consider-
able number of disintegrated balls at bacilli in bouillon, at a subsequent date