Proteus OX19

Proteus OX19 is a strain of the Proteus vulgaris bacterium.

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

History

In 1915, Arthur Felix and Edward Weil discovered that Proteus OX19 reacted to the same human immune antibodies as typhus, so developed the Weil-Felix test for typhus and other rickettsial diseases.

Use in fake epidemic in Poland

Drs. Eugeniusz Lazowski and Stanisław Matulewicz worked with Proteus OX19 during World War II in the small town of Rozwadów in Poland to keep Nazi Germany from taking over the town. The doctors began inoculating villagers with dead Proteus, rendering false positives in tests for typhus. When the blood samples of the townspeople were sent to the German authorities for testing, authorities were convinced a typhus epidemic was burning through Rozwadów. The two Polish doctors used Proteus OX19 to save 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.

References
  1. "Dr. Eugene Lazowski: The Weapon of Intelligence | About the Hero". Lowell Milken Center. 2018-04-06. Retrieved 2021-11-28.
  2. "Chicago's 'Schindler' who saved 8,000 Poles from Nazis dies Chicago Sun-Times - Find Articles". 2007-10-30. Archived from the original on 2007-10-30. Retrieved 2021-11-28.
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