Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1881-10-29
The Diphtheria Plant.

Some light was thrown upon the origin ofdiph-
liberia last night in lecture before the Academy
of Natural Sciences by Professor HoratiO c.
Wood, who gave the result of his researches in
connection with DR.. Henry F. Formal, involving
the important discovery that this fatal and in
sdious disease is propagated by a microscopic
plant or fungi existing in all human beings,
especially in the mouth and throat; but lacking
the power Of reproduction until given increased
vitality by those disordered conditions of the
mucous membrane which attend sore throat
when caused by cold. The Investigations were
made at the instance Of the National Board of
Health and extended not only to the pheno-
mena attending the ordinary epidemic dphtheria
existing in Philadelphia, but to the more viO-
lent form occurring from time to time in differ
emit places. DIR. Forman visited an Infected
town on Lake Michigan, where one-third of all
the children in marshy district died of the cpl
demic; and brought back with him specimens of
the diphtheric virus, several of the false MEN,
branes which are invariably formed in the
Threats Of afflicted persons and portions of their
viscera.
In all blood, said the professor, there are two
kinds of corpuscles. the red or colOr-giying and
the white. By careful study and experiments,
both in human beings and the lower animals,
it was found that this infnitesimal plant fastens
upon the white cOrpuscles, and multples its
cells, altering their character until with the in
terror destroyed they burst and the plants, set
loose in an irregular mass, separate and go of
individually, to continue the destructive work
on other c0rpuscles Thus increased they poison
the blood, choke the vessels and are found in
myriad numbers i'm the spleen and bone marrow,
where the blood is manufactured. Professor
Woods Investigations show that the false men,
brane, supposed to invariably indicate the pres
enc0 of diptheria, may be caused by ammonia.
Spanish fly or any other irritating influence in
the throat, so that its presence is not nfallible
as indicating the existence of this disease. But
in any case the false membrane is built up by
this parasitical plant. which grows and multi
plies upon its infamed surroundings. whatever
may be It's cause. 1t is when the plants grow
strong enough to extend to the blood, either
poisoning it themselves or carrying the poison
with them, that diphthera sets in. This little
plants exactly the same as found upon a coated
tongue When Professor Wood put plants such
matter they failed to grow. On the contrary,
plants from the throat or blood of person az
fected with diphtheria multiplied rapidly.
The practical result of the Investigation
pointed out was the possibility that diphtheria.
if existing theories hold good may be prevented
by artificial vaccination. In the case of splenic
fever caught from animals, which has been
Pasteur has found that the plant, when exposed
a SUFFICIENT time to the air, by the action Of oxy
gen loses its poisonous character, and when
then introduced into the system makes the ami
NAL sick, but is no longer fatal. The deduction
is that that this diphtheric plant, scientifically
known as ''microcOci," may in time be cuiti-
waited so that when inoculated with 1t the eys-
tenn will no longer subject to the disease in its
fatal form. Concluding the lecture. Professor
discoveries could never have been made but for
the aid of vivisectiOn, against which there is a
foolish prejudice in the minds of many.-Phild-
delphid Times, Oct. IL.