THE CHEMICAL STUDY OF SNAKE-VENOMS 163 



of liquid, which contains a small quantity of proteids in solution. 

 These proteids can be nothing but a mixture of proto- and deutero- 

 albumoses with peptones. ' That there is actually no trace of the 

 latter can easily be ascertained. 



Neumeister^ has shown that it is impossible to precipitate all 

 the proto-alhumoses of a solution by saturation with neutral salts, 

 and, since the filtrate becomes slightly turbid when a few drops 

 of a 5 per cent, solution of sulphate of copper are added to it, we 

 must conclude that it contains a small proportion of these proto- 

 alhumoses. 



The deposit retained upon the filter after washing with sulphate 

 of magnesium is redissolved in distilled water, and dialysed for three 

 days. An abundant precipitate then becomes collected in the 

 dialyser. This is centrifuged. The clear liquid is decanted with 

 a pipette, then concentrated by dialysis in absolute alcohol, and 

 finally evaporated at 40° C. until completely desiccated. The solid 

 residue is washed and centrifuged several times in distilled water, 

 after which it is dried on chloride of sodium. 



This method enables us to separate two albumoses, both pre- 

 cipitable by saturation with sulphate of magnesium, and belonging 

 to the class of primary alhumoses : one of these, proto-albumose, 

 is soluble in distilled water, the other, hetero-albumose, is insoluble ; 

 but the latter can be dissolved in dilute solutions of neutral salts. 

 These bodies are respectively identical with those obtained by the 

 pepsic digestion of proteids.^ 



In order to study separately the local and general effects of 

 these different albumoses, C. J. Martin and MacGarvie Smith 

 performed the following experiment : — 



They introduced beneath the skin of the belly of a guinea- 

 pig, previously shaved and rendered aseptic, two small pieces of 

 sterilized sponge, about 2 c.mm., one of which was impregnated 



Zeitschrift fiir Biologie, xxiii. 



Kiihne and Chittenden, " Ueber Albumosen," Zeitschrift fiir Biologie, 1884. 



