8 



QUANTITATIVE ANALYSTS 

 IN BIOGHEIVIISTIIY 



DONALD D. VAN SLYKE, member of the rockefeller institute 



FOR medical research, NEW YORK; VVTLLARD GIBBS MEDALIST 



^HE BIOCHEMISTRY of today is based to a large extent 

 -*• on quantitative analyses by means of micro methods. It 

 lias not only applied the methods developed in laboratories of organic 

 and inorganic chemistry, but has also rapidly developed new pro- 

 cedures to meet the demands of its expanding range of research . While 

 Pregl's system of elementary organic microanalysis, published in 1911, 

 was gaining application, Folin and Wu in 1919 and Bang in 1916 pub- 

 lished quite different systems adapted to blood analyses. The ultra 

 in microanalyses is represented by the methods of capillary colorimetry 

 developed by A. N. Richards and his collaborators for the analysis of 

 glomerular urine, and the extraordinary combination of physical and 

 chemical procedures applied by Linderstr0m-Lang in his studies of the 

 enzymes of cells. 



In a brief survey of the field it will be possible only to mention 

 some of the different types of analytical procedure that have been 

 applied in biochemistry, with examples of a few applications, and refer- 

 ences to reviews in which descriptions and bibliographies can be found. 



Gravinielric A nalysis 



The appearance in 1911 of the Kuhlman micro balance, and 

 of Pregl's system of micro elementary analyses decreased the size of 



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