The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1882-06-04
OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES.
Important Experiments.

0"OIoss VI very serious puDnc import
was delivered by DR.. Koch before the
physiological Society OF Berlin. 1t
touches a question in which We are
Gil at present interested-that Of ex'
perlmentsl phys iology-srd | may.
therefore, be permitted to give some
account of it in the Times. The ad-
dress, a copy of which has been oour-
teously sent to one by its author, is
entitled The Esiology Of Tuberoular
Disease Koch first made himself
known by penetration, skill and tho
rOughness of his researches on the
Contsgium OF splenic foyer. By a
process Of incubation and Injection
ne traced this terrible parasite
through all its stages OF development
and through ita various modes of ao-
ton. This mastery investigation
caused the young pbysician to be
transferred from a modest country
practice, in the neigh5orhood OF
Breslau, to the pos: of government
adviser in the Imperial Health De-
psrtment Of Berlin.
"From this department has lately
been Issued most i'm porIant series
OF investigations on the etiology of
infective disorders. Koch's last in
auiry deals with a disease which, in
point OF mortality, stands at the head
of them all. II, be says, the serious
ness of malsdy be measured by the
number OF its victims, then the most
dreaded pests which bave hitherto
ravsged the World-plsgue and chol-
era included-must stand far behind
the one now under consideration.
Koch makes the startling statement
that one.seventh Of the deaths OF the
human race are due to tuberoular
disease, while fully one-third of those
who die in active middle age are car
ried of by the same cause. Prior to
Koch it had been placed beyond all
doubt that the disease was oommuni.
cable; and the aim of the Berlin ply.
stefan has been to determine the
precise character of the contagium
which previous experiments on inoo-
ulation and inhalation had proved to
be capable of indefinite transfer and
reproduction. He subjected the
diseased organs of a great number OF
men and animals to microscopic ex-
animation, and found, in all cases,
the tubercles infested with minute,
rod shaped parasite, which. by means
of special dye, he differentiated
from the surrounding tissue. It was,
be says, in the biggest degree i'm
pressive to observe in the centre of
the tubercle cell the minute organ
ism which had created it. transfer
ring directly, by incubation, the
tuberculous matter from diseased an
finals to healthy ones, be in every
instance reproduced the disease. To
meet the objection that il was not the
parasite itself, but some virus in
which it was imbedded in the diseased
organ, that was the real contagium,
he cultivated his baceUi srtiicialIy,
for long periods OF time and through
many successive generations. With
8 speck of matter, for example, from
q tuberculous human lung, he in
fected q substance prepared, after
much trial, by himself, with the view
OF afording nutriment to the para
site. Here he permitted it to grow
and multiply. From this new gen.
GRAFTON he took minute sanple and
infected Herewith fresh nutritivs
matter, thus producing another
brood. Generation after generation
of 6aciHi were developed in this way
without the Intervention of disease.
at the end of the process. which
sometimes embraced successive cul
tivations extending over half year,
the purified 6aciLli were introduced
into the C rculstion of healthy ami
mails of various kinds. In every case
linoculation was followed by the re-
production and spread of the parasite
and the generation Of the original
disease.
Permit me to give a further,
though still hrief and sketchy, account
| of Kooh's experiments. OF six
guinea pigs, all in good health, four
were ineculated with bGciLli derived
originally from a human lung, which
i in fifty -four days produced five sue.
cessive generations. Two of the six
animals were not infected. In every
ore of the infected cases the guinea
/ pig sickened and lost flesh. After
thirty two days one of them died, and
after lhirty-fiVe days the remaining
five we're killed and examined. In
the guinea pig that died, snd in the
three remaining infected ones,
strongly pronounced tuberculsr dis
ease had set in. Spleen, liver apC
lungs were found filled with tuber
cles; while ia toe two uninfscted an
imals no trace Of the disease was dis
covered. In q second experiment
six out Of eight guinea pigs were in
oculsted with cultivated baciIli, de
rived originally from the tuberculouI
lung of a monkey, bred and rebreC
for ninety five days, until eight gen
erations had been produced. Every
one of these animals was attacked
while the TWO uniuiected guinea pig
remained perfectly healthy. simila
experiments were made with cats
rabbits, rats, mice and ether ami
, mails, and without exception it va
found that the injection Of the para
site into the animal system was fol
lowed by decided-and, in mos
4 Al