120 SCIENCE PROGRESS. 



aleurone grains are seen as opaque oval bodies lying in the 

 dense protoplasm. Water passed through the preparation 

 dissolves a portion of the exterior, making them transparent 

 and bringing to view the crystalloid and globoid in their 

 interior. Lavage of the section with 10 per cent, solution 

 of NaCl dissolves the rest of the grain, leaving the 

 crystalloid and globoid free. Saturated salt solution then 

 dissolves the crystalloid. The globoid, which is mineral 

 in character, being composed of the double phosphate of 

 calcium and magnesium, remains alone in the cavity where 

 the original aleurone grain had been. 



Vines examined a very large number of seeds by this 

 method and in the main confirmed Weyl as to the compo- 

 sition of the aleurone grains. In some seeds, particularly in 

 those of Sparganium racemostwi, he discovered another pro- 

 teid belonging to the class of albuminates or derived albu- 

 mins, soluble only in dilute acids or alkalis. This proteid 

 he found to occupy the external portion of the aleurone 

 grain. 



We have thus in these seeds two members of the globulin 

 family differing in their degree of solubility in neutral salt 

 solutions and in the temperature at which they are changed 

 by heating. The proteid soluble in water was called 

 vegetable hemialbumose ; it has since been shown to be a 

 mixture consisting chiefly of protalbumose and hetero- 

 albumose. The characteristic reaction which is given by 

 both these bodies and hence by Vines' watery extract is 

 that the proteid is precipitated by nitric acid and that the 

 precipitate is dissolved by warming the liquid, and thrown 

 down again as the solution cools. 



Following on the investigations of Vines, but some few 

 years later, we have the results of Martin's examination of 

 the seeds of Abrus precatorius (9), the jequirity or Indian 

 liquorice, which are toxic in their properties. The proteids 

 were extracted from the ground seeds by soaking the 

 powder for twenty-four hours with 15 per cent, solution of 

 sodium chloride, which was then filtered off. The extract 

 was saturated with ammonium sulphate, which precipitated 

 them. They were found to be two in number, a globulin 



