Evening star., 1929-12-14
MOTION PICTURES
REVEAL HABITS OF
LIVING TISSUE CELLS
Carnegie Trustees Witness
Showing of Film Taken
by Or. w. H. Lewis.
GREAT FORWARD STEP
IN EMBRYOL0GY STUDY
Much That Before Was Matter of
Conjecture Has Been Seen
to Happen.
BY THOMAS r. HENRY.

BY THOMAS r. HENRY.
Trustees of the Carnegie Institution
yesterday witnessed the first showing
of strange moving picture in which
the actors were living tissue cells and
the stage a sealed glass container.
This film, taken by DR.. w. H. Lewis
Of the Carnegie laboratory of embryol-
ogy, at Baltimore, represents a great
forward step, it was explained, in the
study of these microscopic funda-
mental units of all living things as they
go about their daily routine Of ex-
istence-being born, eating each other,
combining for mutual protection and
dying.
The camera has revealed the tragedy
and comedy of their lives. Every liv-
ing body il only an enormous state"
of these cells with its soldiers, laborers,
executives, messengers, scavengers and
lawless criminals. Hitherto their actual
behavior has been largely matter OF
deduction from the effects produced.
The cells are visible under the micro
scope, but their activities, from the
human point of view, have taken place
so slowly that it has been impossi p!e
for the eye to observe them.
Picture Reveals Actions.
Now pictures are taken over a peribd
of several hours and then the film is
run off so that the entire action Is
shown in a few minutes. Much that
before was a matter OF conjecture rps
been seen actually to happen. Ine
cells which played the star roles in tlfs
film are approximately six-thousandths
of an inch in diameter and some of their
movements must be Speeded up 100
times in order to be visible. Others
move rapidly enough so that ther
movements can be seen with the eye
under the microscope, especially GER
tain types of blood cells. Others are
apparently motionless and only the
tirelesS eye of the camera can detect
any motion.
The cells shown in the picture are
scavenger cells clustering like swarm
of hungry dogs about giant cancer
cell, scrambling for bits of dead tissue
and waste material thrown off by the
malignant giant, but apparently hold
ing it in contempt, for they make no
with impunity.
Shown Eating Each Other.
They are also shown in the curious
process of eating each other-that is,
large cell completely ingeStS smaller
cell and makes it part of itself. The
process of birth is shown, cell which
has dlUdl1lS0 1Io uldAAhAuAh oADO oAAAPAy
splitting into two complete or
ganisms, each of which goes its own
way. The life of many of these cells
is comparatively short, especially some
of the blood cells, which have tend
ency to move toward the surface when
the end approaches and are contin-
ually crawling out of the mouth and
other openings of the body. Otners
are eaten by the scavenger cells, thus
1V1NIt q
poisonous waste matter in the body.
The cells move by changing shape
and series of contractions and eXpan-
sions now visible for the first time.
There is a great variety in these move
ments, the film shows. One OF the
most curious phenomena shown by the
camera is the formation of mutual de-
fense groups by smaller cells. many OF
which will combine into which seems
a single enormous CELL It is composed
of individuals living their own lives,
however, and is believed to be device
to avoid being eaten by larger cells
| hunting for prey.
Cell Division Revealed.
The film makes it possible to witness
the phenomenon of cell division, upon
which the growth OF all animals ana
plants depends. This proceeds at f1rSt
very slowly A single cell, rabbit egg,
| was watched for an entire day by the
| camera, while it split once into two
cells. The exact movement by which
this was accomplished was noted. The
! next division into four cells took place
more rapidly, and at last the birth
| process was taking place very rapidly.
Scientists at the embryology laboratory
now have obtained some mouse eggs,
i whose behavior they are studying with
the camera.
The process is the discovery Of DR.
W. l.. Lewis and is the result of research
for nearly 20 years in growing tissue
cells in glass and keeping them alive
for long periods. He is assisted by
Mrs Lewis, who is graduate Of Couch
i er and Bryn Mawr Colleges. This dis
covery of a means to observe the be-
havior of microscopic life is far more
than a stunt" says DR.. George l..
Streeter, director of the laboratory,
since it has placed new instrument III
the hands of science and must be con-
sidered fundamental advance.
Behavior Mechanical.
BY the speeding up process the cells
are seen to behave very much like tiny
animals, but they must not be con-
Sidered, says DR.. Streeter, as creatures
with individuality and consciousness or
looked at from the human" point of
view. Their behaV1or Is probably purely
mechanical and it is only when enor-
nous numbers of different kinds of
them combine that there Is anything
approaching individuality.
The method, DR.. Streeter said, neces-
STATED the perfection of new sort
of culture in which the cells could be
kept alive and the perfection of the
Photographic apparatus so that, under
strong magnification, it would preserve
the slightest details of movement. Un-
less every move was sharply defined the
pictures would show nothing. Once
taken, they can be enlarged as much
as desired.
Before the scientific exhibit the Car
negie trustees held their annual busi-
ness meeting, at which Gen. John j.
Pershing, DR.. w. w. Campbell of Cali
fornia, julius Rosenwald of Chicago
and DR.. William S. Thayer of Balti-
more were elected to membeSsiL;s,,. They
fill the places vacated through the
deaths of Myron T. Herrick and Judge
William w. Morrow and the resigna-
tions of Martin A. Ryerson and Robert
s. Brookings.
Cass Gilbert and Col. William Church
Osborn were elected members of the
executive committee.
A total of $l,716, ,469 was made avail
able for the work of the institution dur
ing the coming year.