GENERAL PROPERTIES: THE CORPUSCLES. 443 



fore, that high altitudes cause eventually a marked increase in 

 the production of red corpuscles, but the very sudden changes 

 of this kind reported by some authors as happening within a few 

 hours must be considered as apparent rather than real, and are 

 to be explained by some change in the water contents or in the 

 distribution of the blood.* 



Physiology of the Blood Leucocytes. The function of the 

 blood leucocytes has been the subject of numerous investigations, 

 particularly in connection with the pathology of blood diseases. 

 Although many hypotheses liave been made as the result of this 

 work, it cannot be said that we possess much positive information as 

 to the normal function of these cells in the body. It must be borne 

 in mind, in the first place, that the blood leucocytes are not all the 

 same histologically, and it may be that their functions are as diverse 

 as their morphology. Various classifications have been made, 

 based upon one or another difference in microscopical structure and 

 reaction, but at present the terminology most used in medical 

 literature is that adopted by Ehrlich. f According to this nomen- 

 clature, the white corpuscles fall into two main groups, the 

 lymphocytes and the leucocytes, and each of these into two or 

 more subgroups. Thus: 



I. LYMPHOCYTES. No granules in the cell substance, and, though capable of 

 ameboid changes of form, this property is not characteristic and prob- 

 ably not sufficient to cause locomotion. 



(a) Small lymphocytes are about the size of the red corpuscles; the nu- 

 cleus is large, symmetrically placed, stains homogeneously, and the 

 cytoplasm is reduced to a very small amount. They form from 20 

 to 25 per cent, of all the white corpuscles. 



(6) Large lymphocytes. Two to three times as large as the preceding. 

 Nucleus somewhat eccentric; the cytoplasm is relatively more 

 abundant than in a, but non-granular. These forms exist only in 

 small numbers, forming 1 per cent, or less of the white corpuscles. 

 II. LEUCOCYTES. Granules of different sorts found in the cytoplasm. Cells 

 characteristically ameboid. 



(a) Transition forms (uninuclear leucocytes). Single large nucleus, more 

 or less lobulated; cytoplasm abundant and faintly granulated. The 

 granules stain with neutral dyes and are therefore designated as 

 neutrophile granules. The name, transition form, implies that these 

 leucocytes represent an intermediate stage between the large lympho- 

 cytes and the following variety, but this belief is vigorously denied 

 by many competent hematologists. This form exists in small 

 numbers 2 to 10 per cent, of the total number of white corpuscles. 



(6) Polynuchar or polymorphonuclear leucocytes. The nucleus is seg- 

 mented into lobes connected by narrow strands. The cytoplasm 

 is especially ameboid and is granular. The granules in most cases 

 are neutrophilic and small in- size. The typical cells of this kind 

 form the bulk of the white corpuscles of the blood, 60 to 75 per 



* For the extensive literature see Van Voornveld, "Das Blut im Hoch- 

 gebirge," "Pfliiger's Archiv," 92, 1, 1902; Zuntz et al., "Hohenklima und 

 Bergwanderungen in ihrer Wirkung auf den Menschen," 1906. Douglas et al., 

 " Philosophical Transactions, Royal Society of London," B. vol. 203, p. 185, 1913. 



t Ehrlich, "Die Anaernie," 1898; see also Seemann, "Ergebnisse der 

 Physiologic," 3, part i, 1904. 



