200 ON VARIABILITY AND ADAPTATION 



cells of flowers in the process of the elaboration of nectar. In 

 animals the curious vacuoles in the nuclei of fat cells which 

 have been known for several years have more recently been shown 

 by Shattock to contain and to give the reaction for fat. 



These data almost justify us in accepting Claude Bernard's 

 remarkable prevision of more than a quarter of a century ago, 

 that the cell substance is the seat of vital expenditure, while in 

 the nucleus resides the power of organic synthesis. This does 

 not, however, in our opinion, exactly represent the relationship, 

 for the nucleus is also the seat of expenditure, nay, appears 

 often to determine that expenditure. But clearly, the indications 

 are that the higher syntheses, those associated with growth and those 

 governing the specific enzyme actions of the different forms of cell, 

 are determined and initiated by the nuclear matter. 



4. The Nucleus in Pathological Conditions 

 of the Organism 



Purposely when passing in review vegetative and proliferative 

 phenomena I did not call attention to the evidence afforded 

 by the study of the nucleus in cases of aberrant cell growth. It 

 appeared advisable to consider the pathology of the nucleus by 

 itself and from all aspects, and that, more particularly, because 

 while the normal vegetative activities are not subjects for our 

 discussion, the abnormal come within our purview. At this 

 point we have to call attention to the evidence of nuclear domin- 

 ance afforded (1) by cases of abnormal cell growth, (2) by cases 

 of disturbed function. 



Regarding the first of these I shall be brief. 



It may be stated unhesitatingly that the majority of patholo- 

 gists at the present moment regard neoplasia or blastomatosis 

 as essentially a condition of aberrant cell growth, brought about 

 not by the constant stimulus of intracellular parasitism, but by 

 some primary alteration of cell environment. As a consequence 

 of such alteration, if I may quote myself, the energies which, 

 had the cells remained in their normal relation, would have been 

 devoted to functional, become diverted to vegetative and prolifer- 

 ative activities. Your active malignant tumour cell has charac- 

 teristically all the attributes of a vegetative cell, or, as it is usual, 

 perhaps unfortunately, to express it, is of the embryonic type. 



