20 Colchicine 



potential use for inducing polyploidy. These preliminary results 

 aroused discussion at Cold Spring Harbor which continued up to 

 April 30, 1937.15 



On this date, the senior author severed connections with the 

 Carnegie Laboratories. Working conditions for continuing colchi- 

 cine research with plant materials were obtained for him May 1, 1937, 

 through the generosity of Dr. Geo. H. Conant in his Triarch Labora- 

 tories, Ripon, Wisconsin. Here the All I inn test was repeated. Datura 

 stram())iitnii seedlings were treated with colchicine, and the drug was 

 applied to the generative cell in pollen tube cultures. Remarkable 

 results at Wisconsin confirmed the previous oj^inion that colchicine 

 was an unusually etfective substance. From these experiments the 

 senior author developed a deep interest in colchicine research, and 

 he has maintained a continued contact with various phases of it 

 through the years. 



Following the departure of the senior author from the Carnegie 

 Laboratories, research workers investigating cytogenetic problems of 

 Datura began treatments of seeds of this species with recommended 

 dosages of colchicine.^" Announcement of these results was made in a 

 publication- by the French Academy of Science in September, 1937. 

 By December, 1937,-' the evidence from Datura and other species 

 clearly established the fact that colchicine was a new and effective 

 tool for making polyploids experimentally. Since there are sufficient 

 historical notes^'^ and colchicine chronologies, -•^' ^o an elal)orate dis- 

 cussion does not seem needed here, except to recommend an article 

 from the Botanical Review,^" published in 1940, for important details 

 of historical significance concerning the pioneering work with col- 

 chicine pmsued at Cold Spring Harbor from januarv to December, 

 1937. 



Independently. Doctors B. R. Nebel and M. L. Ruttle began re- 

 search in April, 1937, and concluded important experiments that year, 

 clearly demonstrating that colchicine acted upon mitosis.-^- Further- 

 more, this drug was an important tool for inducing polyploidy in 

 plants. •■■- Dr. D. F. Jones of Connecticut is credited with calling their 

 attention to colchicine; however, they also acknowledged a biljliog- 

 rajihy in their early publications, mentioning the work by Dustin,^- 

 Ludford,-"* and Brues.^ 



In France, Dr. P. Gavaudan and associates published the first 

 account-" that called attention to polyploidy induced by colchicine. 

 This paper was presented in June, 1937, but little notice was given 

 to the contribution. The text clearly described doubling of the 

 chromosomes along with specific figures. While Havas claims an 

 earlier date in publication,--^' his paper completely disregarded poly- 

 ploidy as a consequence of the colchicine treatment. In this regard 



