Public health laboratory work / by W. Watson Cheyne, W.H. Corfield and Charles E. Cassal.

  • Cheyne, William Watson, Sir, 1852-1932.
Date:
1884
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Public health laboratory work / by W. Watson Cheyne, W.H. Corfield and Charles E. Cassal. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    In man the carbuncular form is not uncommon, and patients so affected may recover; when, however, the disease becomes generahsed death almost always results. In the blood of animals affected with this disease one constantly finds rod-shaped organisms belonging to the class of bacilli. These bacilli are long and thick and are among the largest of the pathogenic bacteria. Not only are the bacilli present in enormous numbers in blood drawn from the body, but if after death portions of the organs are hardened in alcohol, cut into very thin sections, and stained with some of the aniline dyes, all the smallest blood-vessels ANTHRAX BACILLI IN THE CAPILLARIES. X 700. throughout the body will be seen to be full of these organ- isms (see fig. 4). The smallest quantity of blood containing these organisms rubbed into a scratch in another animal causes its death in a very short time, the same appearances being found. If this blood is exposed to a high tempera- ture or treated with substances which destroy 'the vitality of these bacilli it no longer produces any effect when inoculated. If a previously heated wire is dipped into the infective blood and then introduced into a sterilised infusion, or stroked over a gelatinised nutritive material, or over a [H. 17.] C