Dr Latham, Complete hydrolytic decomposition, etc. 537 
On the complete hydrolytic decomposition of egg-albumin at 
180° C. ; and on the constitution and synthesis of dead and living 
albumin. By P. W. Latham, M.D., Gonville and Cams College. 
[Dead 9 March 1908.] 
(Abstract.) 
That lactic acid and carbonic acid can be formed in the manner 
above indicated, at once suggests that other proteid derivatives 
may be synthesised from pyruvic acid and its homologues or their 
nitriles. A very slight investigation demonstrates the truth of 
this assumption and shows that the ketonic acids occupy a most 
important place in the formation or synthesis of various proteid 
derivatives. Picoline, pyridine, indole, the chinoline carboxylates, 
aR-chinolines, tyroleucine etc. etc. are some examples. The most 
important deduction, however, is that the imino-ketonic acids 
are the compounds Schutzenberger termed Leuceins, “a knowledge 
of the constitution of which ” was in his opinion “ the only thing 
wanting to solve the problem as to the general structure of 
proteid matter.” These leuceins differ in composition from the 
amino fatty acids simply by two atoms of hydrogen, the compounds 
C 3 H 5 N0 2 , C 4 H 7 N0 2 , C 5 H 9 N0 2 , C 6 H u N 0 8 being respectively 
CH 3 . C(NH).COOH, 
CH 3 .C(NH).CH 2 .COOH, 
CH 3 . C (NH) . CH (CH S ) . COOEf 
and CH, . C (NH) . CH (C 2 H 5 ) . COOH. 
These combined with the respective amino fatty acids constitute 
Schutzenberger’s gluco-proteins C G H 12 N 2 0 4 and generally 
C n H 2n N 2 0 4 . 
A printed table (Table I), based upon these data, was laid 
before the Society, showing the complete resolution into its 
components of Schutzenberger’s “ residu fixe,” C 22 iH 435 N 4u O 10r ,, and 
of its constituents 3C 9 H 1G N 2 0 6 , acids amidds forts; 3C 9 H 20 N 2 O 4 , 
leucines; and 2C 7 H 14 N 2 0 4 + 1GC 9 Hi 8 N 2 0 4 , gluco-proteins. ( Annales 
de Chimie et Physique, t. xvi. p. 398 (1879).) 
In 1887 Dr Latham in his Croonian lectures and again in 1897 
