The Branched Form of the Bacillus Tuberculosis in Sputum

The first * to draw especial attention to branching and budding forms of the tubercle bacillus were Nocard and Roux (1) in 1887. In the following year Metchnikoff (2) described and figured long, threadlike, branching forms with bulbous ends, observed in old glycerineagar cultfires cultivated at 43.6o-44 ° C. It is probable that these were cultures from avian tuberculosis. )/[etchnikoff suggested the name Sclerothrix kochii for the tubercle bacillus. In 1889 Klein (3) described and photographed filamentous, club-shaped and branching tubercle bacilli in old cultures, and S. G. Dixon (4) reported making in Klein's laboratory observation of these forms. In 1892 A. Maffucci (5) described and depicted similar forms of the bacillus of fowl tuberculosis, which he considered to be thereby distinguished from the bacillus of mammalian tuberculosis. Especial attention was directed to pleomorphism and variability of the tubercle bacillus by the monograph of Fischel (6) published in 1893, in which he described in detail thread-like, branching and club-shaped forms both of mammalian and of avian tubercle bacilli, and emphasized the analogies between this organism and the ray-fungus of actinomycosis. Among the most valuable contributions to this subject are those of Coppen Jones (7), dating from 1893. In glycerine-agar cultures three to four months old he finds constantly filamentous, branching forms of the tubercle bacilhls, and directs especial attention to the