SYNOVIA. 503 



ti'ansparent and yellowish or reddish. Its taste is slightly saline, 

 and its smell similar to that of serum of blood. 



1. M. Dupuytren had an opportunity of examining the syno- 

 via of the knee of a man who was affected with a disease of that 

 joint. It was viscid, thready, transparent, and slightly reddish. 

 Its specific gravity was 1-05.* MM. Lassaigne and Boisset ob- 

 tained from Dr Amussat a small quantity of synovia from the 

 large joints of several dead bodies, which enabled them to make 

 some chemical experiments on it.f From the method of extract- 

 ing it by a sponge, it was necessarily mixed with distilled water. 

 It was colourless, had a slight smell, frothed when agitated, and 

 restored the colour of reddened litmus-paper. Nitric acid and 

 alcohol threw down white flocks, and the infusion of nut-galls oc- 

 casioned a yellowish-white precipitate. These reagents show the 

 presence of albumen in human synovia. 



When evaporated by a gentle heat, a white pellicle formed on 

 its surface, which increased in thickness, and at last was preci- 

 pitated in flocks, which were separated by the filter. The liquid 

 being evaporated, gave a yellow extract, having a saline and sharp 

 taste. And cubic crystals gradually formed in it. Alcohol dis- 

 solved a yellow animal matter. The residue of the alcoholic so- 

 lution being calcined, yielded chloride of sodium, mixed with a 

 little chloride of potassium. The portion insoluble in alcohol 

 dissolved in water, and contained carbonate of soda, and an ani- 

 mal matter containing azote, the nature of which was not ascer- 

 tained. They could detect no uric acid in human synovia. The 

 albumen precipitated contained a little fatty matter. 



According to this analysis, human synovia contains, 



Albumen. 



Fatty matter. 



An animal substance soluble in water. 



Soda, 



Chloride of sodium and potassium. 



Phosphate and carbonate of lime. 



Dr Bostock made some experiments on the synovia from the 

 knee of a man. It contained albumen coagulated and half- coa- 

 gulated, and a mucoso-extractive matter always found in albu- 

 minous fluid.J 



* Jour, de Medecine, Chirurgie, &c. ii. 466. 



t Jour, de Pharmacie, viii. 206. f Annals of Philosophy, xii. 121. 



