4 



Scientific Proceedings (6i). 



similar way. Parallel with the deterioration of the complement 

 and in the inverse proportion, the amount of the dialyzable protein 

 fraction increases. The analysis of this phenomenon which will 

 be described in detail elsewhere, led to the conclusion that the 

 serum of a pregnant woman, treated in the way described above, 

 acquires the ability of digesting itself. Moreover any normal 

 serum placed in contact with "sensitized" placenta acquires the 

 same property, so that the Abderhalden reaction would seem to 

 be composed of two phases: the one — specific — the sensitization 

 of placenta; the other — non-specific — the autodigestion of the 

 serum as a result of the presence of sensitized placenta. Thus 

 the assumption of specific proteolytic ferments of Abderhalden 

 becomes unnecessary. 



3 (935) 



Studies on so-called protective ferments. III. The Abderhalden 

 reaction is not an adsorption phenomenon. 



By J. Bronfenbrenner. 



[From the Pathological and Research Laboratories of the Western 

 Pennsylvania Hospital, Pittsburgh, Pa.] 



In the current literature attention has been directed by Plaut, 1 

 Kjergaard, 2 Herzfeld, 3 Peiper, 4 Flatow 5 and others to the fact that 

 kaolin or starch as well as placenta protein if mixed in suitable 

 proportions with any fresh serum is able to produce the appear- 

 ance of dialyzable substances in the serum. There is no doubt 

 that these experiments show that by the simple adsorption of 

 inorganic substances as well as placenta, serum may be so changed 

 as to give off dialyzable substances. The conclusion however of 

 these authors that therefore the Abderhalden reaction is not 

 specific was premature. For we know that for instance in im- 

 munity work, complement may be fixed or inactivated by many 

 inorganic and almost any organic substances (this is why in 



1 Plaut, Munch, med. Woch., 1914, No. 5, p. 238. 



2 Kjergaard, Zeit. f. Imfz. Orig., XXII, No. I, p. 31. 



3 Herzfeld, Bioch. Zeilshr., 1914, I. 



4 Peiper, D. Med. Woch., 1914, No. 29, p. 1467. 



6 Flatow, Munch, med. Woch., 1914, No. 21, p. 1168. 



