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REPORT OF THE KING INSTITUTE, GUINDY

PART II.—SCIENTIFIC AND GENERAL.

(A) VACCINE LYMPH

        1. Charge of work.—The Assistant Director Dr. C. G. Pandit was in charge
of the section throughout the year and has collaborated in writing this portion of
the report.

        2. Nature of lymph.—The lymph issued is glycerine lymph. It is a mixture
of 1 part of crude lymph with 4 parts of 50 per cent glycerine. Purification is
obtained by glycerine contact in cold storage and during transit—see G.O. Press
No. 1972, P.H., dated 22nd December 1924.

        3. Seed lymph.—The seed lymph used was carried over from last year’s
stock. It has been maintained here since 1921 when Nijland’s method was first
adopted. In these passages, cow-calf, rabbit, buffalo-calf, etc., a careful record
has been kept of the quality of the lymph obtained. These data show that the
factors which cause weakness in vaccine lymph, when it is carried over from
animal to animal of the. same species, also operate in Nijland’s method with
passages to different species. Thus in spite of Nijland’s passages a complete
failure of a strain of lymph occasionally occurs. This is only to be expected
because individual animals with a high resistance to vaccinia can occasionally be
found. What we wish to emphasise is that Nijland’s method by itself is not
sufficient. The greatest care must still be exercised to select strains from animals
giving the best reactions. At present along with the stoppage of lymph manu-
facture during the hot weather passages of seed lymph are also discontinued.
The question whether such passages should be continued in the hot weather is
being investigated.

        4. Yield of pulp. —The average yield of pulp per calf during the year was
23.52 grammes which is the highest yet obtained here. The average yield per
calf since 1904 is as follows:—

        5. Supplies and instructions.—Supplies are now made to vaccinators regularly
four times a month, with instructions to utilize the lymph within four days of
receipt. Revised instructions for the practice of vaccination have been drawn up
in consultation with the Director of Public Health, and have been published in
D. No. 108/V, dated 19th November 1925. (See Appendix I.)

        6. Off-season.—As in previous years since 1923 routine vaccination was
suspended during the four hottest months of the year in districts in the plains—
hill districts do not need an off-season. Although the period of four months has
been the same for all districts, yet the programme of months chosen for the off-
season (April to July for most districts) has varied, changes being made as
indicated by results. Thus during the current year the Director of Public Health
suggested that it might be better to advance the period for the Ceded districts
of Cuddapah, Kurnool, Bellary and Anantapur by a month so that the cessation
would be from March to June. The results for these districts in the last three
years were analysed and it was found that they gave worse results in March than
in July. So their off-season was altered accordingly, see D. No. 14/V, dated