LIST OF PROPOSED FOREIGN MmERS 1944:
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OSWALD THEODORE AVERY (b. 1877)
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   Oswald Theodore Avery may be described as,the senior American
bacteriologist.   He has been a member of the Rockefeller Institute  for
many years and has published numerous papers on a variety of subjects.

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   In 1913, with his colleague Dochez, he started a long study of
the antigenic structure of the Pneumococcus by familiar.serological
methods.  This in itself would not have.led to any important access of
knowledge had he not been interested in chemistry.   In 1920, for in-
,.stance, he was working on the bacterial decomposition of fats, and in
1921 he demonstrated the.existence of two "vitamins!' necessary for the
growth of the influenza bacillus,



   In 1923 he interested .Heidelberger and a number of other chem-
ists in the chemical differenccsbetweon Pneumococci of different anti-'
genie structure.   From this work, subsequent work of his collaborators
and that of many followers, a new field in serology has been opened up.

    Very briefly, in the first paper his teem 'described a complex
polysaccharide`which they had obtained from Pneumococci of the "smooth"
pathogenic variety,   This substance was responsible for the well-known
reactions between Pneumococci and antiserum in the test tube.    It was
not, however, antigenic in the sense that its injection into animals
did not produce antibodies.  .The polysnccharide (1925) was not speci-
ficto the Pneumococcus but was identical with similar substances in
::.;:a& or gum arabio whichalso:i-eacted in the test tube with anti-pneu-
mococcal serum.  Thou h the pdlysaccharide'was not antigenic, it
could be coupled (1929 7 with other substances, for instance horse
serum globulin, and then became antigenic and (1931) ev?n capable of
protecting animals, injected with it,  from a fatal dose of Pneumococci.
Finally (1933), it was shown that chemical components of horse serum
globulin which produced this effect were acetyl groups, since acety-
lation of the polysaccharide rendered the latter antigenic.

   Avery's work originated in an organized attack on respiratory     ,
diseases in which he was the leader.   The developments noted above
were directly due to his stimulus and actual collaboration,   He is, in
fact, responsible for the ,introduction.of chemical methods into the
study of antigenic structure.                _-

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