CHAPTER VI 



CHONDRIOSOMES 



Chondriosomes, or mitochondria, are small globules, rods, and threads 

 almost universally present in cytoplasm. They had no single discoverer; 

 the elements described by many early observers correspond with them in 

 some degree. Thus the "fila" of Flemming (1882), the ''bioblasts" of 

 Altmann (1890), and the "cytomicrosomes" of Strasburger (1882) and 

 others are all recognizable among the chondriosomes of today. In 1897 

 and the following years Benda, through the use of newly devised technical 

 methods, discovered chondriosomes in cells of many types, notably in the 

 spermatogenous cells of animals, and applied to them the term "mito- 

 chondria." It was somewhat later, through the researches of Meves, 

 Regaud, Faure-Fremiet, Lewitsky, Guilliermond, and others, that they 

 came into prominence. Since that time they have been very intensively 

 studied, and a special literature of large volume has developed. Owing to 

 the difhculties attending the observation of such minute objects and the 

 determination of their relation to other cytoplasmic constituents, opinion 

 regarding the origin, behavior, and biological significance of chon- 

 driosomes is still in a very unsettled state. ^ 



Occurrence and General Characters. — Chondriosomes have now 

 been reported in plants and animals belonging to nearly all of the larger 

 natural groups. It is asserted by N. H. Cowdry (1917) that "in all forms 

 of animals, from amoeba to man, which have been investigated with 

 adequate methods of technique, they occur without exception." Their 

 presence has been reported, furthermore, in practically all tissues. In 

 plants it is probable that they are no less universally present, although 

 they have not yet been demonstrated with certainty in Cyanophycese 

 and some Chlorophycese (Guilliermond).^ 



' Reviews of the subject are given by Faure-Fremiet (1910a), Duesberg (1911, 

 1919), E. Schmidt (1912), Cavers (1914), E. V. Cowdry (1916a, 1918, 1924a), Meves 

 (1918a), Guilliermond (1919a, 192U', 1923), Meyer (1920), Lundeg;\rdh (1922), and 

 Nath (1926). Giroud (1925) reviews researches on the physical and chemical nature 

 of chondriosomes. For the effects of various reagents on chondriosomes, see Kings- 

 bury (1912), E. V. Cowdry (1914, 1918), N. H. Cowdry (1917), Meyer (1920), Ozawa 

 (1927), and Milovidov (1928c, 1929). Findlay (1927) describes changes in injured 

 cells. The valuable account by E. V. Cowdry (1918) has been drawn upon in the 

 preparation of this chapter. 



2 They are abundant in myxomycetes (N. H. Cowdry, 1918; Lewitsky, 1924), 

 Charales (Mirande, 1919; Riker, 1921), brown algae (Mangenot, 1920abde), and red 

 algae (Nicolosi-Roncati, 1912). Alexieff (1923, 1925) reports their presence in 

 bacteria. 



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