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Mr. A. H. Smee on Organic Substances [June 16, 



XVII. On Organic Substances artificially formed from Albumen.'^ 

 By Alfred H. Smee, F.C.S. Communicated by Alfred 

 Smee, Esq., F.R.S. Received May 27, 1864. 



Ill a former paper which I had the honour to submit to the Royal 

 Society, I showed that fibrin was formed by the passage of oxygen through 

 albumen, provided a temperature of 98° F. was maintained. It was then 

 observed that a slightly acid state of the albumen, or the absence of the 

 alkaline salts was found to be most favourable to its formation. I noticed 

 also that ammonia had little effect in preventing the formation of fibrin, 

 but after the lapse of a short time caused it to swell to such a degree that 

 its microscopic characters could no longer be determined. It was observed 

 that albumen acted on by gastric juice^ and passed through a membrane, 

 still had the capacity to form fibrin in small amount. 



Since the publication of that paper, I have conducted the follo\ving expe- 

 riments in addition to those before mentioned. I submitted some of the 

 fluid drawn off from a spina bifida to the action of oxygen and heat in the 

 ordinary manner; after the lapse of a few hours it yielded a substance 

 which, under the microscope, presented all the characters of fibrin. 



I tried to obtain fibrin from the urine in two cases in which it was 

 highly albuminous. The urine was so loaded with albumen that it became 

 almost solid by heat. I never have been able to transform this variety of 

 albumen into fibrin, although the experiment was tried in many ways. I 

 expect that on further investigation it mil be found that the albumen found 

 in urine (in most cases at least) is a substance not capable of further deve- 

 lopment. 



The next experiment M^hich I have to describe is to my mind one of the 

 most beautiful exemplifications of the artificial formation of organic bodies 

 under physical laws, producing results similar to those which we observe 

 under certain circumstances in disease, the changes being produced by the 

 action of a gas on a second body separated by a membrane, and having to 

 traverse it before the chemical changes can be effected. 



I passed a current of oxygen gas through a small portion of perfectly 

 clean intestine, with the peritoneal coat attached. The intestine was 

 placed in an albuminous fluid at a temperature of 98° F. ; at the end of 

 twenty-four hours I found the intestine completely invested with minute 

 fibrinous outgrowths, similar to those seen on the intestines of persons who 

 have died at the earliest stage of peritonitis. 



It is worth noticing that although these fibrinous outgrowths take place 

 when the peritoneum of the intestine remains, yet if this coat be stripped 

 off they take place to a very limited extent. In many cases no outgrowths 

 appear, even where the conditions of the experiments are equal. 



It appears to me that the tendency of fibrin to be deposited on serous 

 membranes, under favourable circumstances, may throw some light on the 



