Biology:Proteus OX19
| Proteus OX19 | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification 
| |
| Domain: | Bacteria |
| Phylum: | Pseudomonadota |
| Class: | Gammaproteobacteria |
| Order: | Enterobacterales |
| Family: | Enterobacteriaceae |
| Genus: | Proteus |
| Species: | P. vulgaris
|
| Binomial name | |
| Proteus vulgaris Hauser, 1885
| |
Proteus OX19 is a strain of the Proteus vulgaris bacterium.
History
In 1915, Arthur Felix and Edward Weil discovered that Proteus OX19 reacted to the same human immune antibodies as typhus. Other Proteus strains were similarly used to create reagents for other rickettsiae diseases, thus resulting in the commercial Weil-Felix antibody-agglutination test.
Use in fake epidemic in Poland
Drs. Eugeniusz Lazowski and his medical-school friend Stanisław Matulewicz were practicing in the small town of Rozwadów in Poland during World War II. Dr. Matulewicz realized that since Proteus vulgaris strain OX19 was used to manufacture the then-common Weil-Felix antibody-agglutination test for typhus, inoculating villagers with dead Proteus would cause a false positive result without causing any disease. When the blood samples of the townspeople were sent to the German authorities for testing, authorities were convinced a typhus epidemic was raging in Rozwadów, and the area was avoided by the Germans, saving thousands of Poles.[1][2]
In fiction
The novel 1979 Night Trains, by Barbara Wood and Gareth Wootton, is a fictionalized account of the Proteus story, with details altered.[citation needed]
References
- ↑ "Dr. Eugene Lazowski: The Weapon of Intelligence | About the Hero" (in en-US). 2018-04-06. https://www.lowellmilkencenter.org/projects/view/the-weapon-of-intelligence.
- ↑ "Chicago's 'Schindler' who saved 8,000 Poles from Nazis dies Chicago Sun-Times - Find Articles". 2007-10-30. http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4155/is_20061220/ai_n17079978/pg_1.
External links
- Hasten, Dianna. "Proteus 0X19". Missouri S&T Microbiology Homepage. http://web.mst.edu/~djwesten/MoW/BIO221_1998/Proteus_0x19.html. Retrieved 2020-07-08.
- "Fake Epidemic Saves a Village from Nazis". HolocaustForgotten.com. http://www.holocaustforgotten.com/eugene.htm. Retrieved 2008-04-07.
Wikidata ☰ Q7251702 entry
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