CHEMICAL PHYSIOLOGY. 5 



facility. The first symptom of the addition of saliva 

 to boiled and cooled (to 40 C) starch or pap is increased 

 fluidity, indicating the formation of soluble starch and 

 dextrine. At a later period only sugar is formed, 

 according to the following formulse : 



Starch (synonym = amylon) C 6 H IO 5 



Soluble starch 

 Dextrine . . 



Dextrine. Water. Sugar. 



C ) H?= C 



" The same formula as starch. 



'Amongst the products of degeneration of the spinal 

 marrow in locomotor ataxia, there are bodies resembling 

 starch corpuscles, but consisting entirely of cellulose. 



I had an opportunity afforded me of examining such 

 a case, in which the sense which in physiology we now 

 term the sense of pressure was almost entirely lost, 

 while the sense of pain and the sense of heat and cold 

 persisted. On examining microscopically, and by 

 means of sulphuric acid and iodine, thin sections of 

 the spinal marrow, I found in various parts of it agglo- 

 merations of blue bodies imitating in a remarkable 

 manner wheat-starch coloured blue by iodine. The 

 term amyloid is perfectly correct as applied to this 

 particular degeneration. The reaction of these bodies, 

 however like to that of amylum, is not that of amylum 

 itself, for the latter is coloured blue by iodine alone, 

 while these bodies require the concurrence of sulphuric 

 acid and iodine. 



The secretion of the salivary glands mixed with Mixed Baliva - 

 the mucus secreted by little follicles, in the mem- 



