252 PHYSIOLOGICAL CHEMISTRY. 



reagents as cause a shrinking, the fibres split longitudinally into 

 fibrils ; and this behavior shows that several chemically different 

 substances of various solubilities enter into the construction of the 

 muscular fibres. 



The albuminous body, myosin, is generally considered as the 

 principal constituent of the diagonal disks, consisting of a doubly- 

 refracting substance, while the chief mass of the remaining albumin- 

 ous bodies found in the muscles, also most of the extractive matter, 

 is contained in the isotropous substance. According to the obser- 

 vations of DAJTILEWSKY, myosin may be completely extracted from 

 the muscle without changing its structure, by the use of a 5$ solu- 

 tion of ammonium chloride. This is contrary to the above state- 

 ments. DANILEWSKY claims that in the structure of the muscles 

 another substance enters, similar to albumin, which has not been 

 closely studied and which does not dissolve in ammonium chloride 

 solution, but only expands. Albuminous bodies constitute an 

 important part of the muscular structure, of which it forms the 

 chief mass of its solids. 



Albuminous Bodies of the Muscles. 



Like the blood which contains a fluid, the blood-plasma, which 

 spontaneously coagulates, separating fibrin and yielding blood -serum, 

 so also the living muscle contains, as first shown by KUHNE, a 

 spontaneously coagulating liquid, the muscle-plasma, which coagu- 

 lates quickly, separating an albuminous body, myosin, and 

 yielding also a serum. That liquid which is obtained by pressing 

 the living muscle is called muscle-plasma, while that obtained from 

 the dead muscle is called muscle-serum. These two fluids also con- 

 tain different albuminous bodies. 



The muscle-plasma was first prepared by KimtfE from frog- 

 muscles, and lately HALLIBURTON has prepared it according to the 

 same method from the muscles of warm-blooded animals, especially 

 rabbits. The principle of this method is as follows : The blood is 

 removed from the muscles immediately after the death of the animal 

 by passing through them a strongly-cooled common-salt solution of 

 5 to 6 p. m. Then the quickly-cut muscles are immediately 

 thoroughly frozen so that they can be ground in this state to a fine 

 mass " muscle-snow." This pulp is strongly pressed in the cold, and 



