﻿70 
  Miscellaneous. 
  

  

  Algoo 
  and 
  Fungi 
  and 
  of 
  smaller 
  representatives 
  of 
  the 
  Protozoan 
  

   world 
  itself. 
  The 
  larger 
  forms 
  even 
  take 
  in 
  small 
  Vermes 
  (Rota- 
  

   toria) 
  as 
  welcome 
  prey. 
  To 
  ascertain 
  what 
  constituents 
  of 
  the 
  

   incepted 
  objects 
  are 
  assimilated 
  by 
  the 
  Protozoa 
  the 
  animals 
  were 
  

   fed 
  with 
  the 
  individual 
  materials 
  which 
  enter 
  into 
  the 
  composition 
  

   of 
  these 
  objects. 
  Starch, 
  fat, 
  and 
  albumen 
  are 
  the 
  chief 
  constituents 
  

   of 
  the 
  food 
  of 
  the 
  Protozoa. 
  The 
  author 
  has 
  tried 
  what 
  changes 
  

   these 
  substances 
  undergo 
  in 
  the 
  plasma 
  of 
  the 
  Rhizopoda 
  and 
  Infu- 
  

   soria. 
  

  

  He 
  first 
  of 
  all 
  fed 
  Ameebce 
  with 
  rice-starch 
  by 
  placing 
  a 
  fragment 
  

   of 
  the 
  size 
  of 
  a 
  pea 
  in 
  a 
  small 
  glass 
  vessel 
  containing 
  vegetable 
  

   debris, 
  in 
  which 
  the 
  presence 
  of 
  different 
  Rhizopoda 
  had 
  been 
  

   ascertained. 
  In 
  a 
  few 
  days 
  the 
  inception 
  of 
  the 
  starch-grains 
  could 
  

   be 
  recognized 
  in 
  several 
  individuals. 
  But 
  these 
  grains 
  underwent 
  

   absolutely 
  no 
  alteration, 
  although 
  many 
  of 
  them 
  remained 
  for 
  more 
  

   than 
  a 
  week 
  in 
  the 
  Ameebce. 
  

  

  Hence 
  it 
  appeared 
  that 
  starch-grains 
  are 
  not 
  digested 
  by 
  Amoeba?. 
  

   The 
  author 
  experimented 
  with 
  Amoeba 
  princeps, 
  A. 
  radiosa, 
  Pdo- 
  

   myxa 
  palustris, 
  and 
  Actinophrys 
  sol. 
  

  

  In 
  the 
  oil-experiments 
  olive-oil 
  coloured 
  with 
  tincture 
  of 
  alkanct 
  

   was 
  employed. 
  Put 
  it 
  proved 
  that 
  this 
  also 
  remained 
  quite 
  undi- 
  

   gested 
  after 
  it 
  had 
  been 
  taken 
  up 
  by 
  the 
  animals 
  in 
  the 
  form 
  of 
  

   very 
  small 
  globules. 
  

  

  Thus 
  it 
  could 
  only 
  be 
  supposed 
  that 
  albumen 
  is 
  the 
  principal 
  

   nutriment 
  of 
  the 
  Amcebiform 
  organisms, 
  and 
  this 
  supposition 
  was 
  

   confirmed 
  by 
  experiment. 
  Although 
  the 
  Ameebce 
  are 
  apparently 
  

   unable 
  to 
  digest 
  boiled 
  albumen, 
  observations 
  upon 
  the 
  fate 
  of 
  the 
  

   albumen 
  of 
  the 
  Protista 
  taken 
  in 
  showed 
  that 
  in 
  this 
  case 
  a 
  solution 
  

   takes 
  place. 
  The 
  protoplasm 
  of 
  the 
  swallowed 
  Protozoa, 
  Algce, 
  and 
  

   Fungi, 
  after 
  being 
  liquefied, 
  is 
  taken 
  up, 
  or 
  rather 
  absorbed, 
  by 
  

   the 
  sarcode 
  of 
  the 
  llhizopods, 
  while 
  the 
  indigestible 
  remains 
  are 
  

   thrown 
  out. 
  

  

  With 
  regard 
  to 
  the 
  Infusoria 
  Dr. 
  Meissnor 
  arrived 
  at 
  very 
  similar 
  

   results. 
  He 
  made 
  feeding-experiments 
  with 
  Climacostomum 
  virens, 
  

   VorticeUa 
  nebulifera, 
  and 
  Peranema 
  iricJwphorum. 
  From 
  these 
  it 
  

   appeared 
  that 
  the 
  Infusoria, 
  when 
  all 
  other 
  nourishment 
  has 
  been 
  

   extracted, 
  convert 
  the 
  incepted 
  starch 
  into 
  a 
  substauce 
  which, 
  when 
  

   treated 
  with 
  a 
  solution 
  of 
  iodine, 
  is 
  coloured 
  red 
  (dextrine 
  ?), 
  and 
  

   which 
  is 
  afterwards 
  dissolved 
  in 
  the 
  body. 
  Oil, 
  on 
  the 
  other 
  hand, 
  

   remained 
  quite 
  unaltered, 
  while 
  vegetable 
  and 
  animal 
  albumen 
  was 
  

   assimilated. 
  Boiled 
  albumen, 
  however, 
  remained 
  unaltered, 
  as 
  in 
  

   the 
  llhizopods. 
  

  

  How 
  quickly 
  the 
  solution 
  and 
  assimilation 
  of 
  the 
  albumon 
  take 
  

   place 
  in 
  many 
  cases 
  is 
  shown 
  by 
  the 
  observed 
  digestion 
  of 
  a 
  DiJJla- 
  

   gia 
  by 
  a 
  Climacostomum 
  virens, 
  which 
  only 
  occupied 
  twentj'-five 
  

   minutes. 
  After 
  this 
  lapse 
  of 
  time 
  the 
  Phizopod 
  was 
  completely 
  

   digested, 
  and 
  its 
  empty 
  shell 
  remained 
  within 
  a 
  vacuole 
  in 
  the 
  in- 
  

   terior 
  of 
  the 
  Infusorian. 
  — 
  Zeitschr. 
  fiir 
  iviss. 
  Zool. 
  Bd. 
  xlvi. 
  ; 
  Abstract 
  

   by 
  Dr. 
  0. 
  Zacharias 
  in 
  Biol. 
  Ceatralblatt, 
  1888, 
  p. 
  517. 
  

  

  