60 RED BLOOD-CORPUSCLES 



cachexia and other forms of secondary anaemia 

 the cells in the peripheral hlood invariably show 

 a diminished coefficient of diffusion as measured 

 in the way described (3). 



An attempt was made therefore to reduce the 

 coefficient of healthy erythrocytes artificially, and 

 then to subject them to the influence of strong 

 auxetics such as putrid extract of sheep's supra- 

 renal gland, " globin," and azur. The reduction 

 of the coefficient of the healthy cells was brought 

 about by adding to the jelly only that amount 

 of salts which would just prevent the erythrocytes 

 from laking, and keeping them thus at the verge 

 of haemolysis. The jelly was made as follows : 

 5 c.c. of a 2-per-cent solution of agar in water 

 boiled and filtered. To this was added 1 c.c. of 

 a 2-per-cent solution of azur II, 1 c.c. of putrid 

 extract of suprarenal gland, 1 c.c. of a solution of 

 "globin," and 0'3 c.c. of a 5-per-cent solution of 

 sodium bicarbonate. This jelly was mixed in a 

 test-tube, and while still molten water was added 

 until it arrived at such a degree of dilution which 

 when tested with living erythrocytes would just 

 prevent them laking after exactly ten minutes' 

 incubation. 



When mammalian blood from a case of secondary 

 anaemia was placed upon such a jelly and incu- 

 bated it was noticed that many of the red cells 

 died at once, some showed deeply stained haemo- 

 globin, while many remained unchanged ; but it 

 was also noticed that the granular cells were more 

 numerous than those on a control jelly which 

 contained ample salts the control being made 

 from the same blood. It was noticed that the 



