Decembee 31j 1915] 



SCIENCE 



951 



A number of American species of the Caprifoli- 

 aceffi were tested for hydrocyanic acid, because 

 those reported from other countries showed the 

 presence of hydrocyanic acid. Those tested 

 showed none, either on hydrolysis with acid alone 

 or with emulsion also present. 

 The Seaction of the Pancreas: J. H. Long and F. 

 Pengee. 



The pancreatic juice of man and the domestic 

 animals, as collected by a fistula, is known to have 

 a rather marked alkaline reaction. No attention 

 has been paid to the reaction of the press juice of 

 the organ itself. This may be separated by pres- 

 sure from the minced gland, but very perfectly by 

 aid of one of the powerful laboratory centrifuges 

 now in use. In the experiments carried out by the 

 authors the centrifuge tubes were charged with 

 about 75 grams of the minced organ, each, and 

 given a speed of 3,000 revolutions per minute 

 through 45 minutes. The clear liquid separated, 

 the real pancreatic juice, had a distinct acid re- 

 action in the cases of the beef, hog and sheep pan- 

 creases, and nearly constant in degree. It was 

 found to lie between C ^ 25 X 10"' and 

 30 X lO"'. The reaction may be found to be as 

 characteristic as that of the blood and is doubtless 

 related to it. In the physiological activity of the 

 organ an acid fraction seems to be retained, 

 while an alkaline fraction is thrown to the duode- 

 num. A rearrangement of the phosphate and car- 

 bonate groups of the blood would account for both 

 reactions. In this centrifugal separation, besides 

 the liquid, a lower layer of matter largely protein 

 is obtained and an upper layer of fat and protein. 

 The fresh minced gland, also, shows the acid re- 

 action. 



On the Digestive Activity and Composition of Sep- 

 arate Fractions of the Pancreas: J. H. Long, 

 Maky Hull and H. V. Atkinson. 

 As shown in the preceding abstract, the minced 

 pancreas may be readily separated into three frac- 

 tions by rotation in a powerful centrifuge. The 

 authors have found the relative volumes of these 

 fractions somewhat variable, depending on the 

 speed and duration of rotation. The lower layer 

 may make up fifty per cent., or more, of the whole, 

 and is largely protein. It exhibits both araylolytie 

 and tryptolytic activity. The middle layer is 

 liquid and usually makes twenty to twenty-flve 

 per cent, of the contents of the centrifuge tube. 

 The starch-converting power of this liquid is some- 

 times very strong, especially in the case of the 

 hog pancreas, where one part of it has been found 

 to convert over 150 parts of starch to the colorless 



end-point in ten minutes. Trypsin is also present, 

 and no activator is required to bring out its 

 power. The top layer contains much fat and some 

 protein and is deficient in ferment activity. The 

 fat is rich in phosphorus, pointing to the presence 

 of lipoid bodies of the lecithin type. The freez- 

 ing-point of the liquid layer is apparently a con- 

 stant for the product from each animal, provided 

 the maximum of liquid is obtained. For the beef 

 product the value was found to be about — 1.12 

 and for the hog — 1.62. The investigations are 

 being continued. 

 Kelp: F. K. Cameron. 

 The Inadequacy of Schults's Valency Bule: W. D. 



Bancroft. 

 The Evoh'.tion of the Yeast Type especially 



Adaptable for Bread-maMng : A. Wahl. 

 A Theory regarding Protoplasmic Structure, iased 



on the Study of Emulsion EqmWbrium: G. H. A. 



Clowes. 

 Alleged Abnormal Adsorption of Filter Paper: W. 



D. Bancroft. 

 Adsorption of Acids by Cellulose: W. D. Ban- 

 croft. 

 Oxycellulose : W. D. Bancroft. 

 Boron — Its Absorption and Distribution in Plants 



and Its Effect on Growth: F. C. CooK. 



Boron was applied to manure as a larvicide for 

 the fly maggot, either as borax or calcined cole- 

 manite. The effect of the boron-treated manure 

 on plant growth was studied at Arlington, Vir- 

 ginia, Dallas, Texas, New Orleans, Louisiana, and 

 Orlando, Florida, and various plants and soil 

 samples were analyzed for boron. Boron was ab- 

 sorbed by the plants from the calcined colemanite 

 plats in the same amounts as from the borax plats. 

 Lime added to the manure with the borax had no 

 definite action in preventing the absorption of 

 boron. 



Potatoes, string beans, soy beans and cow peas 

 showed a more equal distribution of the boron 

 among the roots, tops and fruit than was the case 

 with the wheat, beets, tomatoes, radishes and let- 

 tuce plants analyzed. In some cases very little 

 boron was found in the roots or fruit, while a con- 

 siderable amount was found in the rest of the plant. 

 All control plants contained at least a trace of 

 boron. Some control samples of soil contained boron 

 soluble in weak hydrochloric acid, while several of 

 the boron-treated plats several months after boron 

 was added showed none soluble in weak hydro- 

 chloric acid in the upper six inches of soil. If 

 sufiS.cient boron was added to the soil a yellowing 

 of the leaves took place, but this does not neces- 



