Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-04-12
MARAGLIANo's METHOD.
Theories of Vaccination as Defense
Against Consumption.


From the New York Tribune.
At a meeting of prominent physicians in
Philadelphia last week, held to organize a
national society to fight tuberculosis, pa
per from an Italian expert was presented.
The author. Prof Edward Maragliano is at
the head of an institution in Genoa devoted
to researches into this disease, and he re-
counted his own conclusions on the subject.
He is satisfied that It is possible by in
zoculation both to cure persons who are yet
in the incipient stages and to protect
healthy people from attack, just as they
can be saved from smallpox by vaccination.
The world has heard good deal of such
talk in the last ten or fifteen years, and re-
members only too wei. the false hopes ex-
cited by Koch's famous experiments. 1t
accepts any fresh story of that kind with
great reserve therefore, though not with
out eager interest.
In the hundreds of attempts by bacteri-
ologists to prepare prophylactics and rene
dies from bacilli several different methods
satisfactory results with one malady, but
prove disappointing with another. In some
Instances it has been feasible to produce
immunity by a series CT injections of dead
bacteria or of solutions of the poisonous
substances secreted by such organisms.
When the plan was first tried with the
toxins of tuberculosis It did not work well.
This was Kochs program. DR.. Trudeau
says of it: while 1t produces in the ami
NAL experimental upon certain degree of
acquired resistance to doses that would at
first have proved fatal 1t does not protect
agains subsequent incubation with living
tubercle bacilli." The Saranac Lake spe-
cialist himself made experiments with dead
bacilli in 1890 with the same object i'll view,
and became convinced that he was pursuing
the wrong policy. A second system is based
or, fhn f.,fY into ha s.ft
animal of living germs which by some treat
ment have been deprived of "A part of their
virulence. AS long ago as 1892. for instance.
DR.. Trudeau made rabbits immune by in
jections of bacilli taken from birds. the
avian variety being notably less potent than
those in human subjects. Later he substi-
tuted human bacilli, whose character was
modified by artificial culture for long per-
iod of time. Several other experts have fol-
lowed in the same path. Behring now pro-
tects calves from tuberculosis by inoculat-
ing them with living but attenuated human
bacilli.
Although Prof. Maragliano did not reach
a conviction regarding the possibility of
imparting immunity to animals until several
years after DIR. Trudeau had done So he has
not profited as he might have done by the
latter'S work He seems to have followed
the leadership of Koch He has used dead
tecill and toxins to produce the desired
effect on animals. Having gone that far. he
takes the serum from the blood of the latter
and tries Ii on human subjects, with the adj
dition of an .in1ltrate' of a recent culture.
In other words, he filters a fiuid containing
bacilh, rejects the solid portion and
inforces his blood serum with the toxins left
II, solution While a trifing and temporary
influence might be thus produced. one may
we'll fear that no permanent good would re-
suit The Italian briefly and vaguely an
nounces that the stuff thus obtained has
been tried both on healthy and sick persons.
Subsequent examinations, he declares.
showed an increased proportion of defensive
substances in che blood, and there was
diminution of toxic symptoms in one or
more patients. A great deal more expert
ment is necessary before any importance
can be attached to this story. 1t looks very
wrong track and as If his results were de-
lusive.