506  Proteids  of  Seeds  of  Abrus  Precatorius.  {Am,o2^iM7.arnk 
water.  Its  chemical  and  physical  properties  are  not  apparently  altered 
by  boiling  its  solution. 
2.  It  is  not  precipitated  from  solution  by  saturation  with  sodium 
chloride  unless  a  large  excess  of  glacial  acetic  or  phosphoric  acid  be 
added.  It  is  readily  precipitated  by  saturation  with  neutral  ammo- 
nium sulphate. 
3.  It  does  not  form  an  albuminate. 
4.  Nitric  acid  does  not  precipitate  it  in  a  watery  solution ;  but  a 
precipitate  falls  if  solid  sodium  chloride  be  added  nearly  to  saturation.. 
5.  Acetic  acid  causes  a  cloudiness,  which  is  increased  by  potassium 
ferrocyanide. 
6.  Copper  sulphate  and  basic  acetate  of  lead  cause  precipitates,  solu- 
ble in  excess ;  mercuric  chloride,  a  precipitate  insoluble  in  excess. 
7.  Copper  sulphate  and  potash  give  a  pink  coloration  (biuret  re- 
action). 
For  the  albumoses  occurring  in  the  vegetable  kingdom  I  have  pro- 
posed the  name  phytalbumoses,  as  they  differ  in  many  respects  from, 
the  animal  varieties. 
The  phytalbumose  in  abrus  is  closely  allied  to  Kuhne  and  Chitten- 
den's deutero-albumose/  and  identical  with  the  a-phytalbumose  occur- 
ring in  the  papaw  juice.2 
There  are,  therefore,  two  proteids  in  the  seeds  of  abrus  precatoriusr 
sl  vegetable  paraglobulin  and  a-phytalbumose.  In  conjunction  with 
Dr.  Wolfenden,  I  am  now  engaged  in  investigating  the  physiological 
action  of  each  of  these  proteids,  and  hope  soon  to  publish  the  results. 
For  the  present  it  will  be  sufficient  to  call  to  notice  the  close  resem- 
blance between  the  proteids  of  the  papaw  juice  and  those  of  jequirity, 
since  their  physiological  action  appears  to  be  in  many  respects  similar. 
Borate  of  ammonium. — Lashkevich  (cited  in  The  Lancet)  has  found 
this  salt  of  great  value  in  phthisis.  He  gives  five  grains  three  times  a  day, 
in  solution,  alone  or  with  codeine,  hyoscyamus,  or  some  other  sedative. 
The  effect  is  to  reduce  the  expectoration  and,  in  some  cases  in  the  early 
stage,  to  diminish  the  fever.  Inhalation  of  a  spray  of  the  solution  also  re- 
duces the  expectoration  and  alleviates  irritating  and  painful  conditions  of 
the  mouth  and  throat. — N.  Y.  Med.  Jour.,  Aug.  27. 
1  Kuhne  and  Chittenden,  "  Ueber  Albumosen,"  Zeitschr.  fur  Biologie,  vol.  xx. 
2 "Nature  of  Papain,  etc.,"  Jour,  of  Physiol.,  vol.  vi., p.  344. 
