308           A Study on Desiccated Goat Spleen Vaccine-

Emulsion kept exposed to room temperature for three and six hours

A saline emulsion of the vaccine prepared immediately after removal
from thermos jar and kept at room temperature for three hours and six hours,
was found to be active and produced moderate reactions and conferred im-
munity (Table V).

Experiments with the vaccine received from Burma

It was thought desirable to get a sample of desiccated goat spleen vaccine
from Burma ; the Director of Veterinary Services, Madras, was good enough
to get a small quantity for trial. The tubes of vaccine were received in a
sealed tin container, which was placed in a thermos jar packed with ice,
although at the time of opening the jar, the ice had melted during the journey
of five days, and the tin was found floating in water.

The trial consisted in inoculating two goats and two buffalo-calves with
the vaccine as soon as it was received and again into batches of two buffalo-
calves with the vaccine kept in room temperature for one to four days. The
dose of the vaccine given was 0.0025 gram in 1 c.c. of normal saline solution,
the emulsion being prepared just before inoculation in each case. Though
the dose of the vaccine prescribed for buffaloes was only one-sixth the dose
actually used in the experiment, yet inoculations were commenced with
the dose advocated for cattle, viz. 0.0025 gram, as viability of the agent was
alone looked for in this experiment. All the calves were tested for immunity
with virulent bull virus, after the reaction to vaccination had subsided.

The result of this experiment may briefly be described as follows (Table
VI):-

     (a) The two goats that received fresh vaccine developed severe rinder-
               pest and died.
     (b) All the buffalo-calves had mild thermal reaction and at the same
               time acquired immunity as judged by subsequent tests.
     (c) There was no mortality among the calves.

Experiments conducted on adult he-buffaloes with varying doses

A batch of vaccine was prepared on 3 October 1939, from pooled spleen
pulp of three goats of the 342nd passage of Mukteswar strain No. 1 and stored
in Frigidaire.

In this experiment, three sets of adult he-buffaloes (serum-makers) were
selected. The first two sets, consisting of 16 and 15 animals respectively,
were injected on 16 October 1939 with the vaccine that had been
in the Frigidaire for 13 days; the animals of the first set received a
dose of 0.0025 gram each and the buffaloes of the second set received
0.00125 gram. The third set consisting of 15 buffaloes was injected on
17 October 1939 with the same vaccine stored in the cold store for 14
days, each animal receiving a dose of 0.000625 gram.

Two buffalo-calves were used as controls for this batch of vaccine and
were given 0.0025 gram each, on 16 October 1939. Both developed severe
rinderpest and died.