168 THE VITAMINS 



the scorbutic condition is due to a lack of, or to a failure in the forma- 

 tion of, cement substance (Kittsubstanz). At first glance the recent 

 observations of Meyer and McCormick (1928, 1928a) of widely dis- 

 tributed liquefaction of the cytoplasm and cell walls in experimental 

 scurvy would also seem to be in line with this hypothesis. As an extreme 

 illustration of this liquefaction Meyer noted that if a very loose molar 

 tooth is extracted from a scorbutic guinea pig, a drop of gelatinous 

 material is usually found adhering to what remains of the root or 

 occupying the place of it. He attributes the phenomenon, however, to 

 a chemical and not a directly cellular activity — intra- rather than inter- 

 cellular changes. 



Hanke (1929), working in cooperation with the Chicago Dental 

 Research Club, made a very thorough study of the dietary habits with 

 relation to dental disorders in 114 patients from 6 to 60 years of age. 

 Classified according to the type of disorder, 47 of the patients investi- 

 gated showed uncomplicated dental caries ; 25, caries associated with 

 inflamed gums or pyorrhea; and 25, gum inflammation and pyorrhea 

 with no caries. The diets of 27 in the first group and 14 in each of 

 the other two groups were deficient in vitamin C alone. Even more 

 striking was the prompt response in the arrest of caries and in improve- 

 ment in the gum tissue and tightening of the loose teeth in the pyorrhea 

 cases following dietary changes involving a marked increase in vitamin 

 C. For adults 1 pint daily of orange juice containing the juice of one 

 lemon, together with one-fourth to one-half head of lettuce or its equiva- 

 lent in raw cabbage is recommended for the vitamin C supply. More 

 recently Hanke (1930) reports confirmation of his findings on extend- 

 ing his observations to a larger group of patients. 



Quantitative Determination 



As Hess points out (1920, p. 173), "For well over a hundred years 

 it was generally known that scurvy could be cured by fruits and vege- 

 tables, and yet no further progress was made toward a more complete 

 understanding of the value of these foodstuffs. . . . Decided advance 

 has been made only in the past few years since these foodstuffs have 

 been studied from the quantitative viewpoint." 



The beginnings of our modern knowledge of the quantitative deter- 

 mination of antiscorbutic values, as of so many other aspects of scurvy 

 and the antiscorbutic vitamin, are to be found in the work of Hoist and 

 Frolich (1912), who made comparisons of the antiscorbutic values of 

 foods by determining whether or not certain empirically chosen quanti- 

 ties of foods which they fed would suffice to prevent the appearance 



