ALBUMINATES. 125 







alkali albuminates formed slowly at the ordinary temperature, but more 

 rapidly on heating. These solutions may vary with the nature of the 

 proteid acted upon, and also with the intensity of the action of the alkali, 

 but still they have certain reactions in common. 



If proteid is dissolved in an excess of concentrated hydrochloric acid, 

 or if we digest a proteid solution acidified with 1-2 p. m. hydrochloric 

 acid in the thermostat, or digest the proteid for a short time with pepsin- 

 hydrochloric acid, we obtain new modifications of proteid which indeed 

 may show somewhat varying properties, but have certain reactions in 

 common. These modifications, which may be obtained in a solid gelat- 

 inous condition on sufficient concentration, are called acid albuminates 

 or acid albumins, and sometimes syntonin, though we prefer to apply 

 the term syntonin to the acid albumin ate, which is obtained by extract- 

 ing muscles with hydrochloric acid of 1 p. m. 



The alkali and acid albuminates have the following reactions in 

 common: They are nearly insoluble in water and dilute common-salt 

 solution (see page 103), but they dissolve readily in water on the addi- 

 tion of a very small quantity of acid or alkali. Such a solution as nearly 

 neutral as possible does not coagulate on boiling but is precipitated at 

 the normal temperature on neutralizing the solvent by an alkali or an 

 acid. A solution of an alkali or acid albuminate in acid is easily pre- 

 cipitated on saturating with NaCl, but a solution in alkali is precipitated 

 with difficulty or not at all, according to the amount of alkali it contains. 

 Mineral acids in excess precipitate solutions of acid as well as alkali 

 albuminates. The nearly neutral solutions of these bodies are also pre- 

 cipitated by many metallic salts. 



Notwithstanding this agreement in the reactions, the acid and alkali 

 albuminates are essentially different, for by dissolving an alkali albumi- 

 nate in some acid no acid albuminate solution is obtained, nor is an alkali 

 albuminate formed on dissolving an acid albuminate in water by the 

 aid of a little alkali. In the first case we obtain a combination of the 

 alkali albuminate and the acid soluble in water, and in the other case a 

 soluble combination of the acid albuminate with the alkali added. The 

 chemical process in the modification of proteids with an acid is essentially 

 different from the modification with an alkali, hence the products are 

 of a different kind. The alkali albuminates are relatively strong acids. 

 They may be dissolved in water with the aid of CaCO 3 , with the elimina- 

 tion of CO 2 , which does not occur with typical acid albuminates, and 

 they show in opposition to the acid albuminates also other variations 

 which stand in connection with their strongly marked acid nature. Dilute 

 solutions of alkalies act more energetically on proteids than do acids 

 of corresponding concentration. In the first case a part of the nitro- 

 gen and often also the sulphur, is split off, and from this property we may 



