677 



Reference is made to three drawings intended to accompany the 

 paper, but the first of these drawings only was received with the 

 paper* 



June 3, 1847. 



The MARQUIS OF NORTHAMPTON, President, in the Chair, 

 The Right Hon. Viscount Morpeth was elected into the Society. 



A paper was read, entitled " On a Function of the Red Corpus- 

 cles of the Blood, and on the Process of Arterialization." By 

 George Owen Rees, M.D., F.R.S. &c. 



The author states that he was first led to the new theory he has 

 formed for the explanation of the chemical phenomena of respira- 

 tion, and more especially of the change in the colour of the blood 

 which occurs in that process, by having observed that a garlick 

 odour, similar to that evolved from phosphorus, was produced by 

 agitating in distilled water the clot obtained from some specimens 

 of venous blood. His attention was consequently directed to the 

 investigation of the state in which the phosphorus exists in the 

 blood ; and the result of that investigation was the theory, of which 

 the following is a succinct outline. 



The venous corpuscles are known to contain fat in combination 

 with phosphorus. This compound ingredient of the corpuscles, on 

 coming into contact with atmospheric oxygen during the respiratory 

 act, is consumed, and combining with that oxygen, forms the car- 

 bonic acid and water which are expired, and also phosphoric acid, 

 which, uniting with the alkali of the liquor sanguinis, forms a tri- 

 basic phosphate of soda. This salt, like many others, acts upon 

 hsematosine in such a manner as to produce the well-known bright 

 arterial tint. 



The analyses which the author has performed in order to test the 

 correctness of this theory were made upon the blood, both of the 

 veins and of the arteries of the same animal ; and also upon sepa- 

 rated portions of the same venous blood ; one of which portions had 

 been artificially arterialized by having been brought into contact 

 with air, while the other portion had not been so exposed. These 

 comparative experiments showed that arterial blood, both when ob- 

 tained from the vessels and when artificially produced, contains in 

 its serum a larger proportion of tribasic phosphate of soda than that 

 obtained from the veins. The venous corpuscles, as they are con- 

 tained in the clot, yield a fatty matter combined with phosphorus ; 

 while those from arterial blood yield a fat, the ashes of which mani- 

 fest an alkaline reaction. Thus the venous corpuscles are shown to 

 be acted upon both by respiration and by the artificial arterializa- 

 tion of the blood, in such a manner as to lead to the formation of 

 tribasic phosphate of soda at the expense of the phosphorus they 

 contain. 



