1915] Casimir Funk 335 



phosphorus-poor diets, the latter are usually also deficient in vitam- 

 ines, This fact applies, for instance, to the work of Schmorl 



(98) who investigated effects in puppies fed with Heubner's diet. 

 Schmorl admits, however, a possible deficiency of vitamines in this 

 diet. He found diminished formation of bone, a decreased number 

 of osteoblasts and an increased amount of osteoclasts. The bones 

 were very soft despite a sufficient supply of calcium salts in the food. 

 The lesions in the bones resembled those of Barlow's disease; but 

 there were small hemorrhages in the sub-cartilaginous zones, as in 

 human rickets. Schmorl sees a possible connection between a de- 

 ficiency of vitamines and a disturbance of internal secretion. Weiss 



(99) treated ten rickety children with hypophysochrom of Klotz 

 and obtained a favorable impression as the result. 



Investigators who believe there is a definite connection between 

 rickets and disturbance of internal secretion meet the truth half 

 way, as it is possible that certain vitamines, which are necessary for 

 the prevention of this disease, may be used in the organism as " start- 

 ing material" for the activity of the glands of internal secretion, 

 and in this way may play a role in the prevention of rickets. We 

 may accordingly disregard the results obtained by Rominger (100) 

 with the aid of Abderhalden's dialysis method, which led him to 

 conclude that there is no evidence of a disturbance of internal secre- 

 tions in rickets. 



As to the cause of rickets, very few data have been obtained 

 recently. Sittler (55) saw cases of rickets on sterilized commercial 

 butter-milk, to which starch in the form of cereals had been added. 

 He was able to eure these cases with raw milk. More work was 

 done on the therapeutic action of cod-liver oil, either as such or in 

 conjuction with phosphorus. Schloss (loi) described the effect of 

 cod-liver oil with phosphorus on three breast-fed rickety children 

 and found negative calcium- and phosphorus-balances. An addition 

 of calcium acetate rendered the calcium-balance positive. He 

 believed there was a definite connection between the calcium- and 

 magnesium-balance, which showed opposite tendencies, one being 

 positive when the other was negative, and vice versa. Frank and 

 Schloss ( 102) could not find a difference between cod-liver oil alone, 

 or in combination with phosphorus, as regards effects on protein 



