ii4 THE 'SIMPLER NATURAL BASES 



understand. Perhaps the identification of the inactive substance as 

 cadaverine is erroneous, as it is apparently only based on the platinum 

 content of a platinichloride. Perhaps the analyses of sepsine sulphate 

 have been wrongly interpreted. However this may be, it seems clear 

 that a crystalline substance of remarkable physiological properties was 

 obtained, corresponding to those originally possessed by the putrid 

 yeast and described by Schmiedeberg. 



Twenty mg. of sepsine sulphate injected into a dog of 7-8 kilos, 

 weight very soon cause vomiting and defecation ; finally almost pure 

 blood is passed and the poisoning ends fatally ; sepsine is a capillary 

 poison. 



Fornet and Heubner [1908] have isolated organisms which 

 they imagined produce sepsine and the chief of these they named 

 Bacterium sepsinogenes, but in a later paper [1911] they greatly 

 modified their original conclusions. The organism referred to was 

 found not to produce sepsine but a colloidal poison having a similar 

 action and being in some respects comparable to the toxin formed in 

 anaphylaxis. 



A further chemical investigation of Faust's sepsine appears to be 

 very desirable, particularly if it could reveal the constitution of this 

 interesting substance. 



Secretine. 



This substance, which causes secretion of pancreatic juice when 

 injected intravenously, appears to be a base, judging from a method of 

 purification described by Dale and Laidlaw [1912, 3]. This is founded 

 on the solubility of the mercury compound in moderately dilute acid 

 and its insolubility in neutral or weakly acid solution. Dale and 

 Laidlaw's method may be given as an additional example of the tech- 

 nique of using mercuric chloride for the separation of bases (cf. p. 1 19). 



The mucous membrane of the intestine of dogs is scraped off 

 weighed and ground up with one-fifth of its weight of solid mercuric 

 chloride to a smooth paste ; then two parts of water are added for every 

 part of the mucous membrane taken. This mixture can be accumu- 

 lated and kept indefinitely ; the mercuric chloride coagulates the pro- 

 tein and acts as an antiseptic. To work up the mixture it is boiled, 

 filtered through paper or muslin, and pressed dry. The press cake is 

 suspended in an aqueous I per cent, mercuric chloride solution 

 containing acetic acid ; 4 c.c. of this are used for every gram of moist 

 mucous membrane taken. The mixture is boiled and filtered, and the 

 filtrate should be nearly clear. Ten per cent sodium hydroxide is added 



