Selected monographs.

Date:: 1888

Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Selected monographs. Source: Wellcome Collection.

25/440 (page 9)

9- peptonuria and albuminuria as between peptone and albuminous substances proper. Eecent investigations have likewise sliown tbat tbe con- version of albuminous substances into peptone takes place gradually and in stages, certain intermediate or transitional products being formed, and at least one suck product is clearly recognised, analogous in some respects witk albumen,, and in otkers witk peptone, viz. kemi-albumose or pro-peptone (i6). Tke most important peculiarity of tkis substance is tkat it is not precipitated from its watery solution by boiling, but is precipitated in tke cold state by acetic acid and ferrocyanide of potassium, nitric acid, acetic acid and con- centrated solution of ckloride of sodium,^ Tkis substance,, or one very similar to it, kas been discovered by Virckow in tke medulla of bones in cases of osteomalacia, and re- cently by Fleiscker in tke normal bony medulla. An exactly similar substance, or perkaps a mixture tkereof witk anotker form of albumen, kad been previously dis- covered by Bence Jones in tke urine of a patient suffering from osteomalacia, Langendorff and Mommsen made a similar discovery in a case of tkis nature, altkougk tkey were not able to demonstrate tke presence of any similar- albuminous body in tke bones after deatk, and lastly Kiikne found kemi-albumose in tke urine of a patient tke subject of osteomalacia. Tkere are, in addition, a few isolated reports witk regard to tke presence in tke urine of an albuminous substance, non-coagulable by keat, or dissolved by boiling, if precipitated in any otker way (17). However, from tke gene- rally very meagre ckaracter of tke statements it is impossible to decide as to kow far tkey always refer to tke substance in question. Prout, Gerkardt, Beneke, Fiirbringer, and Gowers make, kowever, sufficiently definite statements on tkis subject,, and from tkese we may infer tke occurrence of kemi-albumose in various morbid conditions (18). In addition, Stokvis (ig) kas found it in tke urine of a dog after injecting it into tke rectum ; and finally, Lassar (20) asserts tkat kaving rubbed petroleum into tke skin of rabbits, ke found, after a certain interval, kemi-albumose witk all its ckaracteristic peculiari- ties in tke urine. On tke wkole it would appear from tkese- * For additional reactions I refer to Kiihne and Sallcowski's statements.