154 SUMMARY OF CURRENT RESEARCHES RELATING TO 



of bone-formation. Cartilage, a mesodermal tissue, has, when it pre- 

 cedes bone, the function of providing a scaffolding upon which the 

 osteoblasts can move. Osteoclasts are composed of the fused bodies of 

 one or more cartilage cells, with numerous osteoblasts living within the 

 protoplasmic mass as cell-inclusions (multiple nuclei). 



Granular Cells of Intestinal Epithelium.* — Harry Kull describes 

 specialized granular cells in the epithelium of the small intestine in 

 man, cat, hedgehog, and bat. They have very fine chromafiine granules 

 at their basal end. Besides these there are also cells with extremely 

 fine acidophilous granulations in their basal end. The chromaffine and 

 acidophilous cells are two different kinds of cells, independent of one 

 another. In the epithelium of the small intestine in the guinea-pig 

 there are chromaffine cells which are quite different from the corre- 

 sponding cells in man. There are no acidophilous cells in the guinea-pig. 



Senile Involution of the Oviduct-t — S. H. Geist points out that 

 the involution chiefly affects the mucous membrane. The senile ovi- 

 duct becomes thin, loose, and smooth. The lateral folds of the main 

 folds first begin to disappear in the mucous membrane. The main folds 

 become shorter, plumper, and smaller, and finally nothing can be seen 

 of the lateral folds. In the proximal portion of the oviduct the lumen 

 may become microscopic, or complete obliteration may occur. There 

 is a considerable increase in the connective-tissue of the main folds. 

 The musculature degenerates, especially to the outside. Connective- 

 tissue increases. The elastic tissue disappears. The ciliated and secre- 

 tory cells become indifferent and flat, though some ciliated cells may 

 persist till the eightieth year. The first change in the ciliated cells is 

 the disappearance of the cilia and of the basal rodlets. Another 

 characteristic feature of involution is the appearance in the upper end 

 of the ciliated cells of large and small granules, whose precise nature 

 remains obscure. 



Minute Structure of Uterine Mucous Membrane. | — S. H. Geist 

 discusses the cyclic changes in the uterine mucous membrane in man, 

 and agrees in the main with Hitschmann and Adler. The distinctions 

 between the four phases are not so sharply defined as has been stated. 

 There is a gradational change, spreading from part to part, from 

 fundus to isthmus. The changes in the various kinds of cells are 

 discussed in detail. 



Minute Structure of Adrenals of the Frog.§ — V. Patzelt and 

 J. Kubik find that the adrenals of Rana esculenta include (hke those of 

 Mammals, Birds, and Reptiles) an epithelial and a chromaffine portion. 

 The epithelial portion shows two kinds of cells — the widely distributed 

 lipoid-containing cells and among these scattered acidophilous granular 

 cells. These acidophilous cells (which Stilling called " summer cells ") 



^ Arch. Mikr. Anat., Ixxxi. (1913) Ite Abt., pp. 185-95 (1 pi. and 1 fig.). 

 + Arch. Mikr. Anat., Ixxxi. (]913) Ite Abt., pp. 220-32 (IpL). 

 X Arch. Mikr. Anat., Ixxxi. (1913) Ite Abt., pp. 196-219 (1 pi.). 

 § Arch. Mikr. Anat., Ixxxi. (1913) Ite Abt., pp. 82-91 (1 pi.). 



