Richard A. Ormsbee

Q Fever Endocarditis in the United States

A patient with Q fever endocarditis, which is almost unknown in the United States, was followed for a total of 32 months; the study was begun 3 1/2 months before aortic valve replacement. Diagnosis was confirmed by serology, visualization of Coxiella burnetii in excised aortic valve tissue by direct and immunofluorescence staining, and isolation of C. burnetii from aortic valve tissue. Serum antibodies against phase I and phase II antigens of C. burnetii were identified. Almost all phase I and phase II antibodies were IgG. These findings are compared with those in an uncomplicated case of acute Q fever. New findings on the immune response to chronic Q fever are presented.

Mammalian Viruses and Rickettsiae Their purification and recovery by cellulose anion exchange columns has significant implications.

Techniques of column chromatography with cellulose ion exchangers have been successfully applied to mammalian viruses and rickettsiae. Recovery of virus is excellent, and appreciable purification in terms of phosphorus and protein removal has been demonstrated. Elution characteristics of poliovirus (types 1, 2, and 3), and Coxsackie A9 virus are similar, whereas those of ECHO-13 and Colorado tick fever differ from them as well as from each other. Elution diagrams of preparations of ECHO-13 and polio 2 viruses grown on P32-labeled tissue cultures show a high degree of correlation between the distribution of titratable virus and the distribution of radioactivity. A single adsorption and elution of Q fever or epidemic typhus fever rickettsiae results in a striking degree of purification, as demonstrated by electron micrographs. The chromatographic behavior of the animal viruses and rickettsiae appears to depend more upon the chemical nature of the surfaces of these infectious agents than upon their size. The chromatographic procedure described may prove useful in the preparation of purified, P32-labeled, fully infectious animal viruses for further fundamental research. It may also prove useful for the removal of unwanted host materials in the preparation of vaccines.

Effect of erythromycin, thiocymetin, and three other antibiotics on Leptospira icterohemorrhagiae in the chick embryo.

Summary and Discussion Five broad spectrum antibiotics and chemotherapeutic agents have been tested for their relative effectiveness in suppressing L. icterohemorrhagiae infections in chick embryos. The drugs may be ranked in the following order of potency: erythromycin >penicillin G > streptomycin >aureomycin >thiocymetin > chloramphenicol. These results indicate that erythromycin is potentially a valuable aid to leptospirosis therapy. This must be tested in experimental animals in comparison with penicillin and streptomycin before any more definite statement can be made.