The Old Terminology and the New Analysis of Chromosome Behaviour

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Abstract
Telophase chromosomes are spiralized threads; like the unspiralized chromosomes of the leptotene stage they are single. The doubling described by recent observers, with discordant details, is an optical illusion due to the spiral. Evidence from the effects of X-rays on the living chromosomes supports this conclusion. In fixed nuclei some artifacts may be non-characteristic, others may be characteristic and may correspond in some way with the living structure. E.g., the resting nucleus and the metaphase chromosomes in life are optically homogeneous; after fixation, the reticulum and the differentiation of non-staining "matrix" from "chromonema" may be non-characteristic; they vary with the technique employed. The spiral structure may, on the other hand, correspond with the internal arrangement of the living chromosome. A new system of chromosome study must be built up, discarding much of the existing terminology, taking into account data from every available method of study.

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