Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1901-10-19

| sons which ne Is likely TO encounter
It Is very difficult to immunize animals
to large doses of strychina, belladona
or nicotine, but quite easy to immun-
ize them to the bacterial poisons OF
diphtheria and tetanus Qockjaw).
In the course of the process Of grad
ual administration called immuniza-
ton, it Is possible to administer to q
horse, by hypodermic injection, gradu-
ally increasing doses Of diphtheria poi
son until he Is able to endure several
hundred times as much as would have
at first killed him. There Is. however
limit to the endurance Of the horse, or
to that Of any other animal used for
the experiment. The increase cannot
go on indefinitely. for there is a point
at which 1t will prove fatal. In exper-
mental immunization. the point desir-
ed is that at which the animal receives
the greatest doses Of poison compati-
BILE with continued good health. It is
when this stage Is reached that the
blood shows a change. not in appear
ance, but in chemistry, developing a
phenomenal substance called antitoxin
Two Japanese scientists, Ogaba and
Jashuhara, observed that when some
blood from an immune animal was in
jected into a normal animal 1t con-
ferred immunity upon it. All these
observations were, however, scientific
curiosities until in 1S91-1S93, when
Behring, German. gathered them al
| together and formulated the new meth
cd of treating infectious diseases
known as the "blood-serum therapy.'
The original experiments Of Behring
were made upon diphtheria, later he
and Wernicke, and Kitasato, another
Japanese, investigated tetanus, or lock-
jaw, applying the same principles to Its
treatment.
The Preparation of the Diphtheria
Antitoxin.
At the present time the experiments
made have led to the discovery Of one
certainly curative serum-diphtheria
application-antivenin (antidotal to
serpents' venom); certainly prevent
i've serum-tetanus antitoxin-and a
number of very doubtful serums antido-
tai to blood poisoning, pneumonia and
plague. AS the preparation and en-
ployment of all are upon the same gen.
eral plan, brief outline Of the method
may be interesting.
The first step in the process is the
selection of a diphtheria germ that is
capable Of forming very strong toxin
OF poison. Though diphtheria germs
occur in and can readily be obtained
from the throat of anyone suffering
from diphtheria, 1t Is also true that
not many of these germs are vitality so
energetic as to form strong toxin when
artifiacially cultivated. The bacillus
the germ-is removed from the throat
by means Of small swab Of cotton on
the end Of a wire and is planted" up
on coagulated blood-serum in a test
tube. Here 1t readily grows and multi
flies, producing in "a hours a fairly
characteristic cream-colored smear up
on the surface of the serum-a culture.
In this way it is easily possible to OBJ
tain the diphtheria bacili "pure"-that
Is, unmixed with other germs that
grow in the throat
The bacilli are then made to grow In
some fluid in which the poison result
ing from their activity may diffuse IT.
self. 1t takes q week or more before
the maximum amount Of the poison Is
present. It Is then necessary to kill
the bacilli in the fluid by the addition
Of a germicidal substance such as car
bolic acid, trikresol or formaldehyde,
and then inject it into some small sus-
ceptible animal.
The second step is the selection and
immunization Of the animal that Is to
furnish the surum. For purposes Of
scientific experimentation any animal
may do and mice, rats, guineapigs,
rabbits, dogs, sheep, goats, asses,
mules, cattle and horses have been em-
ployed. If, however, the immunized
animal Is to furnish serum that is 10
be put into practical use it Is evident
that the larger the animal, the greater
the quantity Of serum 1t can furnish,
the better it will be. The horse is the
animal that has been almost univer-
sally adopted for the commercial man.
ufacture of immunized serum. 1t Is
large animal, usually easily handled,
easily observed, and above all. yield
ing a blood which readily clots when
drawn and subsequently separates
beautiful, clear, amber-colored serum.
The horses chosen must always be
carefully examined, as freedom from
constitutional diseases Of all kinds Is
essential.
After giving the animal the prelimi-
nary inspection, the immunization be-
gins. At intervals as frequent as the
horses health will permit. he Is given
doses Of the dphtheria toxin. The
poison is injected beneath the skin. in
to the loose cellur tissue in doses which
must be very small at first, but which
are increased each time. The treat
ment continues for three or four
months, the antitoXin usually begin
ming to appear about the sixth week.
and increasing in amount as the doses
are increased in size.
The third step has to do with the Sc
rum of antitoxin itself. From time to
time during the treatment small
amounts of blood are removed from the
horse through a hollow needle, eau
tiously introduced into the jugular
vein. This blood is carefully tested up