April 9, 1886.J 



SCIEJS r CJb\ 



321 



The second lecture in the course was delivered 

 March 27, and treated of the degeneration and the 

 regeneration of the corpuscles. 



In our study of the blood, we find that there 

 are factors constantly at work to maintain its his- 

 tological uniformity, but as to these processes our 

 knowledge is still very imperfect. In some con- 

 ditions, as during fever, anaemia, and after hemor- 

 rhages, the number of the red corpuscles is very 

 much diminished. In profound anaemia there will 

 be found in the blood the normal red corpuscle, 

 certain small corpuscles to which the name micro- 

 cytes has been given, and larger ones, known as 

 megalocytes. In addition to these, are very irreg- 

 ular forms known as poikilocytes. In atrophy of 

 the stomach the condition of microcytosis, in 

 which the microcytes abound, is very marked. 

 The interesting question concerning these forms 

 is, Are they young cells on their way to the forma- 

 tion of the red corpuscle, or are they degenerated 

 red corpuscles on their way to disintegration ? 

 Hay em considers that first in order come the blcod- 

 plaques, and then the microcytes : Osier, on the 

 other hand, believes them to be degenerated 

 corpuscles, fragments of the old ones. In anaemia, 

 where the irregular shape of the corpuscles is 

 marked, or the condition of poikilocytosis, as it is 

 termed, this may go on to such a degree as to lead 

 to the separation of small particles ; and this sug- 

 gests a possible origin of the microcytes. They 

 may also be formed from the red corpuscles by 

 fission and budding, as may be seen in the red 

 marrow of the bone. 



The megalocyte may be studied in anaemia in- 

 duced by hemorrhage. It has a diameter twice 

 that of the red corpuscle, fourteen millimetres : 

 it is not usually circular nor biconcave, but 

 flattened and irregular. In these cases of induced 

 anaemia by hemorrhage, the white corpuscles are 

 increased in number, both relatively and absolute- 

 ly ; and, as we have already learned, the blood- 

 plaques are increased. In severe anaemia or 

 leukaemia we may find nucleated red blood 

 corpuscles, which are normally formed during 

 foetal life, in the new-born, and up to the age of 

 four or five years. One of these may be seen in 

 every three or four fields. These corpuscles in 

 various stages of development may be studied in 

 the red marrow of the bone, as the vertebrae and 

 the ribs of the child and embryo. Here we find 

 a small solid cell or nucleus ; next, this with a 

 layer of translucent protoplasm : next the proto- 

 plasm becomes colored, and we have a nucleated 

 red corpuscle. The nucleus gradually disappears 

 and disintegrates, giving us the non-nucleated 

 red corpuscle. Rindfleisch thinks the nucleus 

 emigrates from the corpuscle, but Osier thinks 



this is a post-mortem change when it occurs. 

 Some authorities regard these extended » nuclei as 

 the blood-plaques. Bizzozero describes a process 

 of fission in the red corpuscle by which it becomes 

 two cells, and thus explains the formation of new 

 corpuscles, those that undergo fission being direct 

 descendants from the embryonic red corpuscles. 

 Hay em regards the blood-plaques as becoming the 

 red corpuscles. In cells which are to be seen in 

 lymph-glands, in the spleen and the bone-mar- 

 row, are oftentimes to be found red corpuscles, 

 which some regard as on their way to degenera- 

 tion : others look upon them as being new cells. 

 In this intracellular production of the red cor- 

 puscles, Osier is a believer. 



The third and last lecture of Professor Osier, in 

 the Cartwright course before the Alumni associa- 

 tion of the College of physicians and surgeons, 

 was delivered on March 30, and dealt with ' The 

 relation of the corpuscles to the process of coagu- 

 lation.' 



The views of Buchanan, published soon after 

 1830, that the coagulation of the blood was de- 

 pendent upon the white corpuscles, which acted 

 like a ferment somewhat as rennet does in the 

 coagulation of caseine, had for many years been 

 forgotten and ignored. Schmidt of Dorpat, and 

 his pupils, later elaborated these views of Buchan- 

 an. They considered that the white corpuscles 

 furnish fibrinoplastine or paraglobuline, and a 

 ferment, while fibrinogen exists normally in the 

 plasma of the blood ; that the white corpuscles, 

 in furnishing these two elements, undergo dis- 

 integration and destruction. 



Woolridge has, within the past few years, 

 maintained that the white corpuscles play an 

 important part in the formation of fibrine. He 

 has been able to procure leucocytes, or colorless 

 corpuscles, from the lymph -glands ; and when 

 these corpuscles, to which has been added an 

 equal volume of a ten-per-cent solution of salt, 

 are placed in peptone-plasma obtained from the 

 blood of an animal into whose vessels peptone 

 has been injected, coagulation at once takes place. 

 The quantity of fibrine which is thus produced 

 depends upon the number of leucocytes added. 

 These corpuscles seem to form the fibrine, and 

 the weight of the fibrine is the same as that of the 

 leucocytes added. The albumen undergoes no 

 change, while examination shows that the leu- 

 cocytes have undergone disintegration. 



The formation of fibrine in the blood may be 

 studied in the moist chamber. The time at which 

 the process commences varies from fifteen seconds 

 to two minutes. Before coagulation commences, 

 all the corpuscles can be easily distinguished ; and 

 Osier has never seen any appearance indicating 



