Pathological Lesions Produced in Rabbits Following Intravenous Injection of Concentrated Scarlet Fever Toxin.

Abstract

Duval and Hibbard 1 reported in numerous publications the production in rabbits of acute glomerulo-nephritis following the intravenous administration of the bacteria-free toxic principle of Streptococcus scarlatinae, which they characterized as endotoxic in nature. Their histopathological material was considered analogous to that observed in human scarlatinal glomerulo-nephritis. Reith, Warfield and Enzer 2 after repeating these experiments concluded that identical renal lesions also occurred in normal rabbits as well as in those injected with suspensions of non-scarlatinal streptococci. They averred that none of the renal lesions produced were typical of human acute glomerulo-nephritis. Rich, Bumstead and Frobisher 3 were able to produce glomerular damage in rabbits by the intravenous injection of bacteria-free filtrates of fresh broth cultures of a virulent strain of Streptococcus viridans isolated from the blood in a case of subacute endocarditis with renal involvement. Their histopathological material was typical of acute hemorrhagic glomerulo-nephritis.

Recent attempts to concentrate scarlet fever toxic filtrates suggested that a more potent toxic principle than that available in the unconcentrated 72 to 96 hours broth cultures might exert a more constant and specific destructive action on the kidneys and possibly be productive of a minimum lethal dose of scarlet fever toxin useful as test material in the standardization of scarlet fever antitoxin. Two years ago, Hartley 4 prepared such a concentrated substance by dialyzing the scarlet fever toxin through collodion bags, in the manner of Walpole. 5 A large part of nitrogen was thus removed and the dialyzed toxin was subsequently precipitated with increasing quantities of normal acetic acid. The precipitate was finally dissolved in normal saline solution. The resultant solution was reduced to one-fortieth of the original filtrate, having a minimum lethal dose for rabbits of “more than 0.2 cc. but less than 0.25 cc.” and contained from 0.17 mgm. to 0.21 mgm. of total nitrogen per cubic centimeter.