NO-VEMBEE 27, 1914] 



SCIENCE 



791 



of pigment and a moderate hypertrophy of 

 the Malpighian follicles. The capsule was 

 thickened. 



Ouinea-pig 12. — ^Weight 412 grams. This 

 animal received 50 intraperitoneal injections 

 of 5 c.c. of the peptone solution in the course 

 of two months, a total of 250 c.c, or 2.5 grains 

 of albumose. After each injection it was sub- 

 mitted to deep chloro-anesthesia for 15 min- 

 utes. After 25 treatments the weight had 

 increased to 455 grams. At the end of the treat- 

 ments the weight was 485 grams. The post- 

 mortem revealed nothing macroseopicaUy ab- 

 normal, and physically the animal seemed to 

 be in the best sort of condition. Histological 

 examination (Lab. No. 1595) showed that 

 there was a certain amount of anatomic modi- 

 fication of the tissues of some of the organs. 

 The report was as follows : The kidney shows 

 a well-marked edema and cloudy swelling. 

 The glomerular spaces are dilated and the 

 tufts compressed, and in the spaces there is 

 considerable coagulated albuminous material. 

 About the glomeruli there are frequent small 

 accumulations of small round cells, and in the 

 outer layers of the cortex there are occasional 

 lines of interstitial fibrosis. The whole organ 

 showed congestion. The liver showed a very 

 well developed edema, to the extent that in 

 many areas the cells show what seems to be 

 hydropic changes. With this is associated 

 congestion and very moderate interstitial fib- 

 rosis as exemplified in the occasional collec- 

 tions of small round cells in the perilobular 

 connective tissues. The spleen shows enor- 

 mous hyperplasia of the Malpighian follicles 

 together with some increased pigmentation. 

 Within the corpuscles there is evidence of cel- 

 lular fragmentation. The adrenals show a few 

 collections of formative cells in both medvilla 

 and cortex, chiefly in the latter. The other or- 

 gans revealed nothing remarkable. 



Guinea-pig 11. — Weight 445 grams. This 

 animal was treated in exactly the same way as 

 No. 12. After 25 treatments it weighed 482 

 grams and at the end of the experiment, 565 

 grams. The report of the histologic examina- 

 tion (No. 1609) stated that the changes were 

 similar to those found in No. 12, except that 



there were a few retention cysts in the kid- 

 neys and that there was nothing of note in the 

 adrenals except an intense congestion.* 



In this series, which is admittedly small, 

 there is evidence (which we are attempting to 

 verify by an extended series of experiments) 

 that albumose introduced parenterally into 

 the guinea-pig has very little, if any, harmful 

 effect unless the oxidative powers of the or- 

 ganism are below normal. In view of the re- 

 sults of Longcope's experiments, as compared 

 with ours, it seems possible that the more 

 complex proteins will produce effects in the 

 absence of decreased oxidation which the less 

 complex ones will not produce under similar 

 circumstances.^ We are carrying out a series 

 of experiments which we hope will throw some 

 light upon this problem. 



Paul G. Woolley, 

 Daisy Claek, 

 Amie DeMar 



the culture of dedymium xanthopus 

 (ditmar) FR. 

 In a recent attempt to isolate an ascomy- 

 cetous fungus occurring abundantly on the 

 seed pods of sweet clover (Melilotus) there 

 appeared on one of the plates an organism that 

 had spread over the surface of the synthetic 

 medium. The striking feature was the net- 

 work of anastomosing branches varying in 

 width and height to about two millimeters. 

 These were brownish yellow, and slightly 

 raised above the surface of the agar, the whols 

 having the appearance of the vascular system 

 of some maple leaves, as seen on the ventral 

 surface. Microscopical examination showed 

 that these ridges were composed of granular 

 protoplasm with no evidence of a containing 

 vessel or cell wall. About ten days after dis- 

 covery the culture was again examined and 



* The histologic examinations in these eases were 

 made by Dr. T. H. Kelly, who had no knowledge 

 of the experimental procedures used in the indi- 

 vidual oases. They were subsequently verified by 

 one of us (P. G. W.). 



5 These results call to mind Opie 's work along 

 somewhat similar lines (Trans. Assoc. Amer. 

 Phys., 1910, XXV., 140). 



