404 The Ohio Naturalist. [Vol. IX, No. 2^ 



THE EFFECT OF ALKALOIDS ON REGENERATION IN THE 



SCARLET RUNNER BEAN. 



Sergius Morgulis. 



The difference in the rates of growth is undoubtedly one of 

 the most important problems in the study of regeneration at the 

 present time. The problem is now being attacked by a number 

 of zoologists, who study this question from the point of view of 

 the relation of the rate of regeneration to either the degree of 

 injury, or the frequency of injury, or the levels at which the 

 organism is injured. 



Although zoologists agree as to what phenomena are to be 

 described under the head of "regeneration," there is still no 

 concensus of opinion with regard to plants; and while Pfeffer (G), 

 for instance, would limit the term regeneration to those cases 

 only "in which an organ replaces a portion of itself which has 

 been removed" (p. 167), Goebel (2) and others contend that 

 phenomena of regeneration imply also a development of dormant 

 or latent buds present before injury. 



McCallum (4) finds that of all the plants under his observation 

 there were scarcely any "in which these primordia developed 

 without the removal of the shoot, and in every case in which the 

 stem was cut off they developed." 



In an investigation, (now in progress), upon the regeneration 

 of animals, the attempt was made by the writer to study the 

 problem from a new standpoint, that of the modifiability of the 

 rate of regeneration under changed external conditions, with the 

 hope of throwing some additional light upon this somewhat per- 

 plexing problem. It seemed desirable, in connection with these 

 experiments upon animals, to test the method also on regen- 

 erating plants, especially since the subject of the rate of regen- 

 eration, so far as the writer's knowledge goes, does not seem to 

 have been touched upon by botanists. It was important for the 

 purpose in hand to obtain a plant in which the regenerative 

 processes had already been investigated and which at the same 

 time would be available for further experimentation. Such an 

 object was found in the scarlet runner bean, a variety of Phase- 

 olus multiflorus, on which McCallum (4) has done much valuable 

 research, and ascertained many ])oints of importance. 



Omitting details, the method followed was briefly this: 

 Seeds of the scarlet runner bean were germinated in sawdust 

 until they had reached a height of 6 cm. The seedlings were 

 then transferred to pint mason jars. Each jar was completely 

 covered with black paper in order to protect the growing roots 



Contribution from the Rot. Lab. of Ohio Statt- Universitv. XXXVI II. 



