78 V. E. EMMEL 



figures 4, 5 and 6. Cells with a single inclusion usually do not 

 differ greatly in size from those of the first group. Reddish 

 staining bodies, corresponding apparently to centrospheres, may 

 be found in both types (figs. 1 and 8a) although less frequently 

 observed in the more highly phagocytically active cells. The 

 flattened or more kidney shaped foi-m and more eccentric posi- 

 tion of the nucleus in the cells of second type is evidently largely 

 due to the bulging out of the cytoplasm, as the result of the in- 

 gestion of the cellular inclusions and a correlated eccentric dis- 

 placement of the nucleus toward the opposite side or pole of 

 the cell body. Between these two cell types a striking difference 

 in the intensity of basophilic stain may also be frequently noted. 

 The present data, however, warrants the conclusion that these 

 staining differences are correlated to an important degree with 

 functional activities. All gradations are to be observed between 

 the strongly basophilic cells, figures 1, 2, 9, 14 icm and the pale 

 staining cells in figures 6, 10, 14 ycm. Furthermore, it appears 

 of significance that the macrophags containing the larger number 

 of cellular inclusions are almost always the paler in cytoplasmic 

 stain. After the study of a large number of these cells one is im- 

 pressed with the suggestion that this may, in part at least, be a 

 direct result of intracellular digestive functions. Certainly there 

 can be no question but that the digestive chemical interactions 

 between the phagocyte and cellular inclusion, whatever their 

 exact nature may be, are of such a character as to change the 

 ingested erythrocyte from a bright red staining cell to a practi- 

 cally colorless non-staining mass (figs. 5, 6, and 8). In case of 

 an ingested erythroblast the erythrocytic nucleus may first be- 

 come fragmented (figs. 4 and 5) or else manifest progressive 

 changes from center toward its periphery (figs. Qn and 33e, also 

 p. 95), but in either case it eventually experiences a practically 

 complete loss of its staining properties. On the other hand, how- 

 ever, may not this digestion also involve correlated changes in 

 the staining substances of the phagocytic cell? The frequent 

 association of a pale staining cytoplasm with maxinmm phago- 

 cytic activity strongly indicates that this is the case. If this 

 conclusion is correct it offers an explanation for the basophilic 

 differences between the two types of cells under consideration. 



