Effect of Anaerobically Prepared Pneumococcus Autolysate Toxin on Mice and Evaluation of Pneumococcus Autolysate Antitoxin in Mice

1. Certain anaerobically produced autolysates of pneumococcus injected intravenously kill mice in 0.1 to 0.2 cc. quantities in a few hours to 8 days. 2. The symptoms of mice inoculated with these autolysates are weakness and increasing prostration until death. Massive albuminuria is found, appearing 18 hours after injection. During the course of a prolonged intoxication ascites and edema of the subcutaneous tissues may develop. Large pale yellow or white kidneys are found in mice that survive 5 days. In these latter animals, emaciation is usually marked at death. 3. The antitoxin prepared in horses by immunization with the anaerobically prepared toxic autolysates of pneumococcus neutralizes the poisonous autolysates whether mixed in vitro before injection or injected separately after the autolysate. 4. The injection of pneumococcus autolysate toxin incompletely neutralized with autolysate antitoxin causes a protracted intoxication with symptoms and pathologic findings similar to those found in mice dying slowly after injections of the toxic autolysate alone.