46 PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY IN MEDICINE. 



spacial differentiation of chemical processes have also 

 seemed capable of a seductively simple solution by belief 

 in the existence of a finely chambered structure in living 

 matter. 



Against the very considerable evidence that has been 

 brought forward for the existence of the honeycomb 

 structure, any other conception of the constitution of 

 jellies could hope to receive but little attention. Never- 

 theless, the attempt is once more to be made in the 

 following pages to enter into a discussion of this difficult, 

 but for the biological chemist so important, question of 

 the structure of jellies. This will be followed by a dis- 

 cussion of the possibility of explaining certain funda- 

 mental properties of living matter which have been 

 looked upon as an expression of its honeycomb structure 

 independently of such a structure. 



II. 



Jellies are capable of a separation into two sharply 

 denned phases; in other words, they can be precipitated 

 or coagulated. Such a precipitation can be brought 

 about, for example, through the addition of the sulphates, 

 acetates, tartrates, or citrates of the alkali metals. For 

 the sake of clearness we will base our considerations upon 

 the behavior of gelatine, which represents one of the 

 most thoroughly studied among the jellies. The separa- 

 tion during precipitation of a phase rich in gelatine 

 from one that is poor can be observed not only micro- 

 scopically, but also by allowing the precipitate to settle 

 to the bottom of the vessel while kept in a thermostat, 

 when the phase poor in gelatine forms a distinct layer 



