Mixed Bacterial Toxins in the Treatment of Tumors II. Gross and Microscopic Changes Produced in Sarcoma 37 and in Mouse Tissues

Summary 1.Mixed bacterial toxins of Serratia marcescens and Streptococcus pyogenes produced necrosis in Sarcoma 37 when given intraperitoneally to Swiss mice bearing the tumor subcutaneously. 2.The toxins acting on Sarcoma 37 produced changes which included edema of cells, pyknosis of nuclei, shrinkage of cells, and cellular disintegration, with resulting hemorrhage and eventual sloughing of the tumor followed by healing and scar formation. 3.The mixed bacterial toxins also caused a general reaction which was much more severe in tumor-bearing mice. The morphologic evidence of this general reaction was relatively nonspecific and consisted of pulmonary and splenic trapping of leukocytes, together with a great increase in the numbers of disintegrating cells in the lymphoid tissues. 4.Consideration is given to possible mechanisms involved in the tumor-necrotizing action of bacterial products, and some speculations are made.