The Examination of the Tissues and Some Observations on the Blood Platelets of Rabbits at Intervals of Five Minutes, and Later, after Intravenous Inoculations of Staphylococcus aureus and Indian Ink

Abstract

1. The tissue reactions in rabbits from intravenous injections of live and dead Staphylococcus aureus and massive doses of indian ink and colloidal silver have been studied.2. Any particles injected into the circulation cause the accumulation of polymorphs in the lung capillaries.3. Inert colloidal particles such as indian ink are clumped in the capillaries of the lungs, liver, spleen and kidneys, and are phagocytosed by the endothelial cells.4. Staphylococci (S. aureus), live or dead, are nearly all held up in the lungs, where they are actively phagocytosed by the polymorphs within 5 minutes of an intravenous injection.5. Subsequently the cocci are distributed to the other organs, where phagocytosis continues mainly by polymorphs, but in the liver also by the Kupfer cells.6. Special attention is drawn to the localisation of the cocci in certain areas in the kidneys.7. Platelet counting on animals injected with various substances showed that there is an agglomeration of the particles with the platelets, which are consequently removed from the circulation.8. In the case of the inert particles the platelets are then restored to the circulation. With organisms (S. aureus) some of the platelets appear to be completely removed from the blood together with the bacteria.