June, 1921] 
MACDOUGAL — WATER DEFICIT 
301 
have been proved to promote growth, also accelerate hydration in biocol- 
loids. 
As an additional step in this work, the effect of the water-soluble B 
yeast vitamine on biocolloids and living and dead cell-masses was measured. 
Solutions of this material at one tenth percent, having an acidity of PH = 
5.25 as determined by the colorimeter method, were used, and measurements 
were taken by the auxograph. Taking the swelling in water as 100, the 
values obtained in the vitamine were as below : 
Potato tubers, young, sections 75 
Potato tubers, large, sections 230 
Squash fruits, young, sections of pulp no 
Squash fruits, mature, sections of pulp 115 
Orange seedlings, root tips, living 150 
Orange seedlings, root tips, dried 120 
Corn root tips, small, living 88 
Corn root tips, large, living 78 
Corn root tips, large, dried 180 
Strawberry root tips, living 133 
Sunflower stems, sections of pith, mature, living 150 
Opuntia, sections of young joints 94 
Opuntia, sections of mature joints 170 
Opuntia, dried slices 90 
Agar 140 
Agar and soap 132 
Agar and potassium oleate 80 
Agar and phenylalanine 95 
Agar 3, gelatine 2, and "salts" 130 
Agar 3, gelatine 2, soap 92 
Agar 3, gelatine 2 136 
Agar 3, gelatine 3 135 
Agar 2, gelatine 3 .143 
Agar 2, gelatine 3, and "salts" 130 
Gelatine 163 
Gelatine and soap 92 
The vitamine is seen to increase the hydration swelling = water capacity 
or water deficit of agar, agar-soap, agar-gelatine, agar-gelatine-salts, and 
gelatine, but to lessen hydration in some biocolloids containing soaps which 
would be sensitive to the free hydrogen ions of the vitamine solution. 
Parallel action in living and dead cells is implied, although it is to be noted 
that such cells may already include a certain amount of their characteristic 
vitamines and that the added vitamine could exert no additional effect 
except that of reducing hydration capacity.^ 
Summary 
I. The theory as to the constitution of living matter by which plant 
protoplasm is taken to be a pentosan-albumin-soap colloidal mixture is 
^ MacDougal, D. T. The effects of yeast vitamine water-soluble B on plant cell- 
masses and on biocolloids. Proc. Soc. Exper. Biol, and Med. 18 : 85. 1920. 
