Scientific Proceedings. 



17 



3. After conjugation the organisms start with high potentials 

 of metabolic energy which gradually wear out, but which can be 

 restored artificially. So, too, the dividing energy starts with a 

 high initial potential energy, which cannot be restored after ex- 

 haustion. 



In the light of these experiments it would be pertinent and 

 instructive to ascertain whether artificial parthenogenesis, in sea- 

 urchins for example, could be repeated more than once on the 

 same continuous protoplasm. On a priori grounds a successful 

 result would be extremely doubtful. 



8. " On the origin of cholesterin in gallstones " : CHRISTIAN 

 A. HERTER. 



The author said that experiments made in his laboratory by 

 Dr. Wakeman give strong support to the view that inflammatory 

 conditions of the walls of the gallbladder may lead to an increase 

 in the cholesterin of the bile. Dr. Wakeman injected strong solu- 

 tions of bichlorid of mercuiy into the gallbladders of dogs which 

 had previously fasted for three days. After periods of from two 

 to five days the animals were killed. As a rule the gallbladder 

 walls were much thickened and the epithelium was proliferated and 

 desquamated. The solids of the bile were diminished in percent- 

 age. The cholesterin content was much increased. The contents 

 of the gallbladder in these experiments were sterile. These facts 

 are of great interest in relation to the etiology of gallstones. 



9. " On nucleic acid," with a demonstration of preparations : 



Phoebus A. levene. 



According to Osborne, nucleic acid derived from the plant cell 

 differs from that of the animal cell because of variations in the 

 characters of the contained pyrimidin radicals. The author has 

 devised a new method of separating the pyrimidin bases, in which 

 he avoids precipitation with silver. With this method he has 

 obtained from animal nucleic acid (derived from the spleen and 

 pancreas), thymin, cytosin, and uracil. The radical of the latter 

 substance had been supposed to occur only in plant nucleic acid. 

 Kossel and Steudel have made this same observation in regard to 

 the nucleic acids derived from the thymus gland and from fish 

 sperm. 



