The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-11-04
THE LOCKJAW ANTITOxIN.
Strange susceptibility of Drain and
Nerve Tissue to Its Action.

StruhSe susceptibility OF Brain ana
Nerve Tissue to Its Action.
From Chambers Journal.
The science of immunity--the study Of
toxins and autitoxins. or, In more homely
language, poisons and their antidotes, as
we may respectively designate that great
field of research which has for Its ambi-
tious aim the Punishment of disease from
our midst-has already attracted
investigators of the most d.
verse nationalities into It's se-
ductive provinces, among whom many
have reaped a rich harvest of discoveries
and left a golden record of results craven
on Its roll of fame. Just len years have
elapsed since the malignant mIcrobe Of
lockjaw, or tetanus. was first successfully
separated from its harmless associates by
a young Japanese student investigating
bacterial processes in DIR. Koch's labora-
tory Ia Berlin. Kitasato's discovery was
OF immense importance, for IL opened the
avenue moi only to better understanding
of the nature of this terrible disease Of
lockjaw, but also to the study of the most
eftcactous means for arresting Its fatal
course in those unfortunate individuals
who had fallen victims 10 its machina-
tons.
As more and more progress was made
in the production of antitoxins, a sub
stance probably chiefly associated by the
general public at the present time with The
new cure for diphtheria. as our knowledge
concerning the methods of celebrating
these potent destroyeTs has advanced,
science has become possessed of a number
Of antitoxines of different kinds which can
be handled and applied with almost as
mIIph a cpanlirffu he
mon of our household drugs or family rem
edies. Statistics have shown of what serv-
ice some of these so-called new cures have
proved, and we have records of successes
achieved hailIng from all parts OF the
world-!n the prevention of cholera,
plague, yellow fever, diphtheria, as well
as in comprising the lethal action of the
venom of serpents. Lockjaw, however,
has proved a very troublesome subject to
master, and while encouraging results
have been from time to time received of
the efficacy of its antitoxin, there have al
so been many disappointing instances re-
corded in which its use has not been at
tended with any success. These antitox-
ms, 1t will be remembered, are, simply the
blood Of animals which have been arth-
cialy rendered incapable of having, or i'm
mune to, any particular disease, such
blood being designated, according TO its
origin, "anti-diphtheria." "anti-tetanus,"
'anit-plague" serum.
So far the application of these various
antitoxins has consisted in simply inject
ing some under the skin of the Individual
il Is Intended to relieve; but a short time
ago some Investigations were published
which bid fair to reveal an entirely new
aspect of the whole study of the preven-
tive treatment of disease. For these ex-
tremely important researches we are in
debted to DR.. Roux of the Paris Pasteur
Institute, and his discovery will undoubt-
eddy mark a new era in the history of pre-
ventive medicine. The distressing symp-
toms of tetanus all point to its being a
disease affecting the nervous system of It's
victim. Now, the failure in so many in
stances of the anttoxin 70 mitigate in any
way the progress of the disease shows that
either II was incapable Of arresting the
passage of the virus to the nerves or that