NationalLibraryOfScotland/medical-history-of-british-india huggingface dataset:
14 ANNUAL REPORT OF THE IMPL. INST. OF VETY. RESEARCH,
ceptible as sheep when tested by inoculating them with potent
seed material.
IV.—JOHNE'S DISEASE.
Three cows were detected to be suffering from the disease in a
dairy herd by means of avian tuberculin. They were sent to the
Institute for research purposes and a number of interesting observa-
tions were made including:—
Effect of calving.—One cow gave birth to a calf on the road
up to Muktesar. She steadily lost condition and died
of Johne's disease 20 weeks later. The other two cows
maintained excellent condition and gained in weight for
the first 10 weeks, in spite of the fact that rectal smears
regularly showed numerous acid-fast organisms. A
second cow then calved and also steadily lost condition
from that time until she died of Johne's disease some
18 weeks later. The third cow proved not to be in calf
and maintained excellent condition until the end of the
year, that is during some 7 months of observation, and
acid-fast organisms continued to be numerous in rectal
smears examined once a month.
Isolation of Indian strains.—From both the cows which died
strains of the bacillus of Johne's disease were isolated
in culture by Mr. Mobbs. It is believed that these
strains are the first of Indian origin ever to have been
isolated.
Diagnostic agents.—Tests were carried out upon certain
products made from the bacillus of Johne's disease in
comparison with our routine product made from a strain
of the avian tubercle bacillus. The indications arrived
at were that none of them were equal in value to our
avian tuberculin for the diagnosis of Johne's disease.
Some work upon culture media for acid-fast organisms was
carried out by Mr. Mobbs. Synthetic media, also tried, proved to
be of little or no value for the cultivation of acid-fast organisms.
Infection of small laboratory animals with the bacillus of
Johne's disease, referred to in last year's annual report, was con-
tinued. It was found that although lesions were produced in
guinea pigs, the organisms could not be recovered in culture from
them. Strains were, however, recovered in the case of rabbits and
the work is being continued.
The large scale experiment for ascertaining the vaccinating re-
lationship between the bacillus of Johne's disease and the avian
type of tubercle bacillus referred to in the last annual report, was
finished. Owing, however, to a surprising decrease in virulence of
the culture of the avain tubercle bacillus used for test purposes, no
conclusions could be arrived at.
MUKTESAR, FOR THE YEAR ENDING THE 31ST MARCH, 1930.
15
V.—BOVINE THEILERIASIS.
The study referred to at some length in last year's annual
report, was continued during the year upon a new batch of
Holstein bulls imported into India by the Army Department in
November 1929. The batch consisted of 12 bulls imported from
South Africa and 6 bulls imported from Holland. It was found to
be very difficult to get into touch with the bulls at the time of the
occurrence of disease in them, and a special journey was made to
Ambala on one occasion only to find a severe form of the disease
had not developed in the bulls there. In spite of elaborate pre-
cautions having been taken by the Military Farms Department to
prevent massive infestation with ticks occurring during the early
part of the sojourn of the bulls in India, the records we have been
able to collect showed the following state at the end of the year :—
Acute Theileriasis affection.
Bull.
South African bulls
Dutch bulls
Affected.
Recovered.
4
0
Died.
2
0
Doubtfully
affected.
3
0
Not
affected.
8
6
Since the end of March, however, affection has begun to occur
in some of the Dutch bulls also.
It would appear that the steps taken to avoid the halt in transit
to farms after arrival in India where, it was believed, massive
infestation with ticks had occurred in the previous year (1928) had
the effect of delaying the onset of the disease, and it may transpire
that mortality will be less severe on this account.
Unfortunately we have only been able to examine material
from one of the animals which died, and as this was received after
preservation and we were not able to see the post-mortem examina-
tion, only very little information has been obtained. Histological
examination reveals, however, similar changes to those referred to
in the last annual report. The detailed study of the histology of
the lesions has not been proceeded with, owing to pressure of other
work.
VI.—BOVINE ENDEMIC HÆMATURIA.
Four cases of this condition were detected in hill bulls used for
experimental work at Muktesar, and a study upon them was taken
up by Mr. Malkani. The etiology of the condition had not been
elucidated at the end of the year.
VII.—GOAT DISEASES.
(1) Interesting material was sent to the laboratory for examina-
tion from goats affected with a disease called " Phet " or " Pitto "
occurring in local areas in Sind. A marked similarity is noted to
B 2
16 ANNUAL REPORT OF THE IMPL. INST. OF VETY. RESEARCH,
the condition described by BALDREY (1906) under the name
" Gillar ". It appears from the examination conducted so far
that the disease is probably due to invasion of the intestinal mucous
membrane by immature forms of amphistomes. The work is still
in progress.
(2) We were approached to assist in an important investigation
upon a disease in transport goats in Northern Garhwal, by the
Director, Civil Veterinary Department, United Provinces. The
disease, known locally as " Athela ", is a contagious form of pleuro-
pneumonia and it is believed that it should be capable of control by
preventive inoculation measures. It is said to cause very great
economic losses annually to the people employed in transport-
trading in the district. The United Provinces Government ap-
proached us to undertake an investigation into the same condition
as long ago as in 1916, but owing to shortage of staff we have been
unable to comply with the request up till now.
VIII.—CONTAGIOUS ABORTION.
No new research work was taken up upon this subject, with the
exception of the investigation upon goats referred to below, owing
to shortage of staff.
(1) Bovine abortion.—A number of statistics were received and
examined from Military Dairies and other farms. Vaccination was
advised and started at one farm where the disease appeared to have
been recently introduced. Specific infection was confirmed by
the agglutination test in the cows which aborted, whereas tests
upon representative samples from the remainder of the herd gave
negative results.
The following figures, indicating that vaccination may possibly
have been responsible for increasing the fertility of cows at one
farm, are worth recording:—
Year 1929.
Vaccinated animals
Unvaccinated animals
Average
number
of cows.
273
76
Normal
calvings.
Per cent.
84.8
58.9
Abortions.
Per cent.
1 or 0.3
Nil.
(2) Equine abortion.—Further statistics including vaccination
records were collected during the year and are awaiting study.
(3) Abortion in goats.—An investigation was taken in hand
upon what appeared to be an outbreak of a contagious disease
resulting in an epizootic of abortions among goats at the Hissar
Cattle farm. The casual agent had not. been detected at the end
of the year.
MUKTESAR, FOR THE YEAR ENDING THE 31ST MARCH, 1930.
17
IX.—EQUINE RESPIRATORY DISEASES.
(a) Strangles.—Control measures in Army Remount Depôts
recommended for the season 1929-30 included the use of—
(1) a drug, Tryparsamide, and
(2) a product suggested for trial by Colonel A. Olver, C.B.,
C.M.G., then Deputy Director of Veterinary Services,
Northern Command, prepared from several strains of
streptococci isolated from " field " strangles cases, based
upon BESREDKA's anti-virus theory for the confer-
ring of local immunity.
Both treatments were to be employed for use in the early febrile
stage before the appearance of local lesions. The results had not
become known at the end of the year.
(b) " Paddock fever " in equines.—A product for use in a simi-
lar way to the anti-virus referred to above, and suggested also for
trial by Colonel Olver, was an anatoxin prepared from several strains
of the so-called Bacillus X. It was prepared at this Institute and
issued for use in a Remount Depôt where a number of cases of
equine pleuro-pneumonia have occurred annually. The results of
its use had not become known at the end of the year.
A laboratory study upon the strains of Bacillus X revealed that
they could be divided into different species of the B. subtilis—
mesentericus group. Although in a single early experiment, where
all the strains were grown together in culture, definite toxic
symptoms were displayed on injection of a filtrate into a pony,
yet when the strains were grown individually no toxin production
could be demonstrated. Agglutination tests with sera obtained
from the Depôt from suspected cases of " Paddock fever " failed to
show any relationship with the Bacillus X strains.
X.—GLANDERS.
Work was undertaken mainly in connection with mallein pro-
duction. A visit was paid to the Mona Remount Depôt which
resulted in the isolation of a new " strain " of B. mallei. The
strain shows interesting differences from those at present available
at the Institute and the subject of their comparison is under study.
A study of the best method of infecting ponies with glanders for
the purposes of mallein testing is in progress.
XI.—SURRA.
No new work was undertaken, but the practice of Edward's
intrathecal-intravenous method of treatment of horses with " Bayer
205 " gave uniformly excellent results when applied for student
demonstration and other purposes at the Institute.
XII.—KUMRI.
The method of treatment referred to in last year's annual report
for the cure of kumri by artificial injection with surra and subse-
18 ANNUAL REPORT OF THE IMPL. INST. OF VETY. RESEARCH,
quent treatment of that disease by intrathecal-intravenous " Bayer
205 " was carried out upon 5 horses during the year, but no benefi-
cial results are yet apparent.
XIII.—TETANUS.
Considerable work was carried out by Mr. R. N. Naik upon the
production of anatoxin for the preparation of anti-toxin, but the
work was unfortunately interrupted and the products have not
yet been submitted to test.
XIV.—CANINE DISEASES.
(a) Distemper.—At the request of Messrs. Burroughs Wellcome
& Co., a test of Laidlaw & Dunkin's method of vaccination employ-
ing vaccine and virus was carried out. Owing, however, to inter-
current disease among the pariah dogs used for the work no definite
conclusions could be arrived at, except that it appeared from the
control dogs, which received only virus, that either the virus had
lost virulence to become almost mert, or else the pariah dogs em-
ployed had a high degree of natural resistance.
(b) In collaboration with Captain Osman Bodman, I.M.S., work
was undertaken upon the elucidation of a problem he had in hand
where a relationship appeared to exist between typhus cases occur-
ring in man at Bareilly and disease in dogs, and it was thought that
the dog might possibly be a carrier. The study was extended at
Muktesar to include work that had been in progress for some time
previously upon indefinite and undiagnosed cases of disease in a
large kennel of dogs in Northern India. A bacteriological study
made by Mr. Mobbs revealed that there exists an infection in these
cases with members of the Enteric or " food poisoning " (Sal-
monella) group of bacteria. The work is still in progress.
XV.—FOWL DISEASES.
A reference has been made in the annual report of this Institute
for the last two years upon the so-called " Ranikhet disease " of
fowls. The work was continued somewhat intensively during the
year and the results obtained may be stated by quoting the summary
and conclusions from a paper submitted to the World Poultry
Congress, 1930 :—
" Summary and conclusions."
1. The disease described in this paper was first recognised in
India in 1927.
2. It is an acute, usually non-febrile, contagious and highly
infective disease of fowls, caused by a filter-passing virus and
characterised by respiratory distress, and high mortality.
3. Reports have frequently been received of heavy mortality
occurring an ongst the crow population of infected localities.
MUKTESAR, FOR THE YEAR ENDING THE 31ST MARCH, 1930.
19
4. The incubation period in the artificially produced disease is
ordinarily from 3 to 5 days, but may be as short as 2 days or delay-
ed until the 6th or 7th, and, exceptionally, even the 14th day.
5. The duration of recognisable illness in the artificially pro-
duced disease is usually extremely short, averaging only 1½ days,
but the period may extend to ten days.
6. Ninety-five per cent. of Indian country bred fowls used in
transmission experiments proved to be susceptible to the virus and
only ten per cent. of the affected animals survived.
7. Except for the occurrence of petechiæ in the submucosa of
the proventriculus, post-mortem lesions of diagnostic value are
almost entirely absent.
8. Emulsions of internal organs stored unpreserved in a refri-
gerator have been proved to retain their infectivity for periods
extending to 155 days.
9. Serum obtained from recovered fowls is protective against the
disease, but serum produced from donkeys proved to have no pro-
tective value.
10. A few attempts were made to prepare a vaccine suitable for
employment against the disease, but they were unsuccessful.
11. The disease has been shown to be immunologically identical
by cross-immunity tests with both " Newcastle disease" in
England and " Avian pest " in the Philippine Islands.
Subsequent to the submission of the above paper, the three
viruses have been studied further by inoculation into pigeons, and
with each virus a very definite and exactly similar train of symptoms
was set up, which is quite different to that exhibited by fowls.
Whereas fowls show progressive weakness of the limbs during the
course of the disease, pigeons exhibited a definite paralysis of the
wings and legs.
A controlled filtration experiment was executed where each
strain of virus was mixed with a culture of Bacillus pyocyaneus
and passed through an L 3 bacterial filter candle. The filtrate proved
to be sterile upon cultural examination, but was still fully infective
for fowls in the case of each virus.
XVI.—PROTOZOAN DISEASES.
In addition to the study of Theileriasis in imported cattle
already referred to, and a number of routine examinations made
for Equine and Canine piroplasmosis, arrangements were made to
undertake a study of the transmission of the Piroplasmosis of
animals, beginning with Canine piroplasmosis due to P. gibsoni.
The work was to be undertaken by Mr. S. K. Sen, but could not be
advanced very far on account of the lack of a reservoir of the virus.
Malaria in buffaloes.—Further observations were made upon this
interesting subject, since two buffaloes revealed infection during
the course of Anti-Rinderpest serum production at Muktesar.
Parasites were present in the blood for a period of about 10 days
20
ANNUAL REPORT OF THE IMPL. INST. OF VETY. RESEARCH,
with some degree of fever at the outset of the infection. Both the
buffaloes showed a relapse some six months later, but at this time
showed no evidence of fever or other departure from normal health.
A few transmission experiments were attempted with negative
results.
XVII.—HELMINTHOLOGY.
(1) Some preliminary work by Mr. Malkani was done on the
following :—
(a) Evagination of the scolex of parasitic cysts by the use of
bile.
(b) The migration of Cysticercus tenuicollis on the liver of
goats.
(c) The presence of Cysticercus tenuicollis in the pleural cavity
of goats.
(d) The detection of Cysticercus bovis in hill cattle.
(2) Parasitic gastritis.—A serious outbreak of disease in the
cattle of the Dairy herd at Muktesar due to massive infection
with Mecistocirrus digitatus occurred during the year resulting in
the death of 2 dairy cows and 3 calves. The outbreak was con-
trolled by changing the grazing grounds, and treatment with a
mixture consisting of Copper Sulphate and Cooper's Dip gave fairly
satisfactory results.
(3) Diagnosis of Echinococcosis in cattle.—An investigation was
carried out upon the use of intradermal and subcutaneous injec-
tions of the fluid contained in Hydatid cysts for the diagnosis
of Hydatids, as originally devised by CASONI (1911) and
PONTANO (1920). The results indicated that it was of no useful
value whatever, since the reactions obtained gave no guide at all
to the intensity of infection.
XVIII.—ENTOMOLOGY.
(1) Warble Fly Pest.—An extremely interesting investigation
was carried out by Mr. Malkani, in collaboration with Mr. S. K.
Sen, into the life history of Warbles as found in hill bulls at
Muktesar. The larvæ were first noticed in the œsophageal region
in the months of September and October, although even younger
specimens have since been found in April and May, and later
they were found in the usual sites along the back. Some of these
were obtained and allowed to pupate, and ultimately the mature
fly was recovered. With the kind help of Major Patton of Liver-
pool these warbles have been identified as belonging to the species
Hypoderma lineatum.
(2) Work was also performed by Mr. Sen in connection with—
(a) Observations on the bionomics and anatomy of Corizoneura
longirostris.
(b) Role of Blood in Ovulation in Blood-sucking Insects.
MUKTESAR, FOR THE YEAR ENDING THE 31ST MARCH, 1930.
21
(c) A collection of Ixodes japonensis (Neumann, 1904), from
a barking deer, Cervulus aureus. These were kindly
identified by Professor Warburton of Cambridge.
XIX.—MISCELLANEOUS CONDITIONS.
(1) Pseudo-tuberculosis in small laboratory animals.—An out-
break in rabbits and guinea pigs maintained for experiment which
caused considerable mortality was diagnosed and investigated by
Mr. Naik.
(2) Anaphylaxis.—On account of reports received of Anaphy-
lactic shock occurring in animals following repeated injections
of protective products, and particularly following Blackquarter
Aggressin injections, some experiments attempting to produce
severe Anaphylactic shock in experimental animals were undertaken
at Muktesar. Briefly stated, the conclusions arrived at were :—
(a) Anaphylaxis occurs only when Blackquarter Aggressin is
used, and not after repeated injections of any anti-sera.
(b) Shock is observed only when Blackquarter Aggressin is
used after repeated injection of sera.
(c) No mortality occurred in the experimental animals used
in the work.
(3) Toxicity of Sodium fluosilicate.—Experiments were under-
taken under the supervision of Mr. D'Costa before this agent was
employed upon a large scale in the " field " for the destruction of
locusts. It proved to be of low toxicity when given in compara-
tively large doses to cattle by drenching or mixed in feeds. A
grazing experiment, planned to simulate natural conditions as the
agent would be employed upon pastures in the " field ", failed to
affect buffaloes, cattle, sheep or goats.
(4) Mortality in " healthy " experimental animals.—The
figures of deaths in animals before their use in experimental work
are:
of 2,033 hill bulls 100 or 4.9 per cent. died,
of 230 sheep 34 or 14.8 per cent. died,
of 666 goats 121 or 18.1 per cent. died.
It represents a very great improvement upon previous years
in the case of hill bulls. Mortality in outkraals has been under
study for a number of years, and it appears that better supervision
provided by having a Veterinary Inspector in charge is having the
desired effect in reducing the number of deaths.
In last year's annual report reference was made at some length
to studies upon Pneumonia, the chief cause of mortality in animals
awaiting experiment. A careful watch was maintained by means
of weekly returns of deaths from Pneumonia throughout the year,
but at no period did it assume epizootic proportions and no
further special work upon it was therefore undertaken during the
year.
22 ANNUAL REPORT OF THE IMPL. INST. OF VETY. RESEARCH,
(5) Foot-and-mouth disease occurred several times in outkraals,
but it did not assume unusual proportions.
XX.—ROUTINE EXAMINATIONS.
(1) Outside specimens.—Altogether 583 specimens were received
in 276 consignments from outside sources.
(2) Post-mortem examinations.—A total of 2,428 examinations
are reported by the Pathologist as against 2,070 performed during
the previous year.
(3) Blood smear examinations.—A total of 7,067 examinations
made are reported by the Pathologist which is more than double
the number reported last year (3,260).
(4) Other routine examinations.—593 samples of fæces, 7
samples of urine and 8 skin scrapings were also dealt with by the
Pathologist during the year.
REPORT OF THE DEPUTY DIRECTOR, IMPERIAL
VETERINARY SERUM INSTITUTE, IZATNAGAR.
(MR. J. R. HADDOW, B.Sc., M.R.C.V.S., D.V.S.M.)
I.—ADMINISTRATION.
The following gazetted staff was employed during the year :—
(1) Deputy Director, Mr. J. R. Haddow, on duty throughout
the year.
(2) Laboratory Assistant, Upper Grade, Mr. G. P. Goffi, on
duty throughout the year.
(3) Bio-Chemist, Dr. K. C. Sen, was transferred to this Insti-
tute temporarily on 25th November 1929 and remained
until the end of the year under report.
The designation of this Institute, previously known as the
Branch Institute of Veterinary Research, was changed to the
Imperial Veterinary Serum Institute, Izatnagar, and that of the
Officer-in-Charge to Deputy Director, by the Government of India,
Department of Education, Health and Lands, in their Notification
No. 568-Agriculture, dated 19th March 1930.
The budget grant of this Institute has been separated from
that of the parent Institute at Muktesar from 1st April 1930, and
certain financial and administrative powers have been delegated to
the Deputy Director.
II.—SUPPLIES.
(1) Fodder.—During the year 9,760 maunds of grain and 38,120
maunds of fodder were consumed by the Institute animals as com-
pared with 11,830 maunds of grain and 51,104 maunds of fodder
in the previous year.