A Study of Pneumococci: a Comparison between the Pneumococci Found in the Throat Secretions of Healthy Persons Living in Both City and Country and Those Obtained from Pneumonic Exudates and Diseased Mucous Membranes

1. Typical pneumococci were present dunng the winter months in the throat secretions of a large percentage of healthy individuals in city and country. 2. A higher percentage of atypical strains of pneumococci have been obtained from healthy persons than from those suffering from pneumonia. In the latter cases the atypical strains may have been overlooked, because of the larger number of typical pneumococci present. Many of the atypical strains seem to be closely related to the streptococci. 3. The so-called Streptococcus mucosus Schottmuller, which has hitherto been classed with the distinct streptococci, is placed as a definite variety among the pneumococci, and it is recommended that the name be changed to Streptococcus lanceolatus, var. mucosus. 4. A lower percentage of strains of pneumococci virulent for rabbits in the doses used has been obtained from normal cases by rabbit inoculations of mass cultures than from cases of pneumonia by the same method. 5. Since the virulence of pneumococci may be rapidly increased for a susceptible species of experimental animal by successive passage, and since pneumococci obtained from most pneumonias are more virulent for experimental animals than are those obtained from healthy individuals, therefore the virulence of pneumococci from cases of human infection is probably increased for human beings; hence cases of pneumonia should be considered to a certain degree as contagious and, since the virulence of the pneumococcus may be quickly increased and since the organism is very prevalent in normal sputum, all possible measures should be taken to restrict public expectoration. 6. By repeated inoculations into sheep of a pneumococcus strain, a specific protective power of this serum for mice is developed against the homologous strain and against certain other strains, one morphological variety (Streptococcus lanceolatus, var.mucosus) being thus clearly differentiated from other strains. 7. Coincident with this production of protective power, a slight specific increase of the sheep serum in phagocytic power in vitro has been observed with some strains of pneumococci, all strains of Streptococcus lanceolatus, var. mucosus, acting similarly with the serum produced by the inoculation of one strain; the strains of some other varieties, however, have shown no definite relationship between the phagocytic power and the protective power of the serum.