East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current, 1906-04-21
BEWARE OF POISON
AGRICULTURAL COLLEGE
ISSUES INFORMATION
Ptomaine Poisoning the Subject OF an
Interesting Bulletin by Prof. Pernot
Public is Warned Of the Causes
and Possibilities of the Common
Form OF Poison Found In Foods.

Bulletins Nos. 81 and So, the for
mer on canning fruits and vegetables
and preserving fruit juices and the
latter on the San Jose scale, have
Just been issued from the Oregon
Agricultural experimental station, at
Corvallis, and may be had free for the
asking while they last.
No. 81, in addition to giving many
valuable points on preserving fruits
and vegetables and fruit juices, de-
votes considerable space to ptomaine
poisoning with relation to canned
goods. Professor Il. f. Pernot, the
author OF the bulletin, says:
The general acceptation of the
term "ptomaine" Is enormously con-
strued as being poisons occurring in
canned goods and other foods, but 1t
is a broader term, covering all bac-
terial excretions, and as all material
Is more or less acted upon by organ
isms, 1t necessarily contains pto-
maines. There are certain varieties
OF micro-organisms which produce
the minority and produce poisons un-
der certain conditions only.
The poisonous ptomaines are toxins
which produce toxic effects when
taken into the system with foods;
these toxic ptomanes or tox-albu-
mems are elaborated by the activities
of certain bacteria. while they are
growing and feeding upon plant or
animal matter, either raw or cooked,
and are designated principally by the
material upon which the organisms
are acting. After these basic aka
loids are once produced they are not
easily destroyed by subsequent cook
ing, hence the danger of partial de-
composition OF food material either
before II has been canned or after re-
moval from the can.
There are several varieties of putre-
factive organisms which produce pto-
maine poison in canned meats. head
cheese. fresh pork, fish and other ami
nal matter, both raw and cooked. A
peculiar feature of ptomaine poison
ing Is that the material containing a
dangerous amount Of the poisoning, or
germs which produce It, show but lit
tie or no indication of its presence.
Specimens of pOrkchops and head
cheese received at the laboratory and
which were known to have caused Sc
we're illness in individuals who par
took of them, gave no indications OF
their containing a dangerous poison
nor organisms which produce IT,
neither by dlscoloration. odor nor
breaking down of tissue, yet the mi
croscopical examinations showed the
specimens to be permeated with ba-
cili.
The cause of ptomaine poisoning
may frequently be traced to careless
ness through the utilization OF pro-
ducts which are not marketable ow-
ing to partial decomposition. Ice
cream has been known to produce
ptomaine poisoning because 1t has
been allowed TO melt and after re-
naming in that condition for some
time is mixed with fresh material and
again frozen. During the period dur
ing which IL remains in melted con-
dltion an excellent media is offered
for the growth of germs which pro-
duce tox-albumens. and the subse.
quent cooking. or freezing, does not
destroy the toxins.
Gamers are sometimes unjustly
held responsible for goods which
cause ptomaine poisoning when In
fact It is the consumers carelcssness
In allowing germ action to occur ir
the material after the can has beer
opened. on the other hand some OF
the canning establishments should be
censured, II not punished. for placing
upon the market goods which have
been processed n second time. The
regular vent in cans is usually a small
puncture In the center of the cap
which in the process of canning Is
closed with a drop of solder. A car
having more than one puncture fre'
quently marks 1t as having been re-
processed and therefore dangerous.