a Res 
ae 
AMERICAN NATURALIST 
Vou, XXVIII. February, 1894. 326 
SOME RECENT CHEMICO-PHYSIOLOGICAL DIS- 
COVERIES REGARDING THE CELL.’ 
By R. H. CHITTENDEN. 
In opening this discussion, or rather in making such remarks 
as seem appropriate in connection with the subject before us 
for consideration this morning, I am reminded that the chem- 
istry and the chemical processes of the cell have received very 
little attention from the generality of biologists. This is per- 
haps natural, since the morphological side of biology has for 
many years presented a more attractive field for the majority 
of scientific workers, and the difficulties have not been so great 
as in the chemical and physiological problems awaiting solu- 
tion. 
Simplicity of structure, as embodied in the single cell of a 
unicellular organism, means to the physiologist increased com- 
plexity of function. In the higher organism with its many 
groups of cells, we can easily comprehend how one group may 
be characterized by one line of functional activity, while a 
neighboring group of cells in the form of another tissue or 
organ is endowed with functional activity of quite a different 
order. One group of cells is set apart for one line of duties, 
_ While another group has quite different functions ; in other 
y 1The Introductory paper in a discussion of our present knowledge of the cell at 
_ the meeting of the American Society of Naturalists, New Haven, Dec. 28, 1893. 
