TENSION PHI.NMMi NA OF LIVING ELEMENTS. 147 



Koeppe 1 and Hober 2 explain this process in the following 

 manner: The lipoid-soluble CO 2 enters the corpuscle, and by 

 reacting with alkali albuminates in the protoplasm, gives off 

 more , i it ions than it does in the serum. During the presence of 

 CO 2 , the corpuscle is permeable to anions, and the CO 3 = or 

 HCO..;- ions pass back into the serum, brin^ e\chani;i <1 for Cl~ 

 ion-, to equalize the electrical potential. Sodium bicarbonate 

 being mop- alkalescent than sodium chloride, the titratable 

 alkalinity ot the serum is increased. 



Thi- explanation is supported by the follouiii'j tarts: \\'hen 

 CO Is passed through a suspension of erythrocyte- in cam- --ugar 

 solution tin- laiter does not become alkaline. If ( '< ' i- pa ed 

 through a mass of centrifuged erythocytes, which an- then added 

 to physiological salt solution, the latter become- more alkaline 

 than the M rum in Hamburger's experiment. Any -odium -.ill 

 mav be -ub-titiitc-d for serum, and its anions will pa into the 

 corpu-cle-.'' Also the number of ionic valence- pa in:; into the 

 coipu-clr i- constant, i. e., if sulphate is used only hall as many 

 ion- enter the corpuscles as when chloride or nitrate i- n-ed. 

 The pr< is reversed by removal of the O 



Thi- -aim- phenomenon has been observed in lencoc\ it- by 

 \ an del ^i hroHT. 



There -eeins to be some relation between ha-mol\-i- and 

 -liitinaii'iii of the corpuscles. Arrhenius 4 Mippo-cd thai ag- 

 glutination by acids is due to the coagulation ot the prou id- ot 



the ei;\elnpe. Ho\Ve\XT, since aggllltillat i< HI i- folloued b\ 



precipitation, it seems probable that the loss of the negative 



electric ih.iixe which tends to keep the corpu-cle in -n-peii>-iiiii 

 and causes ii to repel every other corpuscle, i- partly rc-pon-ible 



I". 'I the |iheli< Uliena. 



The fact that water-laking is preceded by agglutination mi'^ht 

 be explained if we assume that increa-e in permeability to ions 

 1 -.til- to lo-s of electric charge. The char-t may be due to the 

 charge- "ii the colloids of the corpuscle or to semi-permeability 

 to ion-. The corpuscle is very poorly permeable to ions, but may 



\rch., 1897. LXVII.. 189. 



- ; >:., 1904. CII., 196. 



3 Il.unluirK'-r and van Lier, Engelmann's Arch., 1902, 492. 



* Hi,: >;,;. /.,-ii.. 1907. VI.. 358. 



