A Histochemical Study of the Organic Matrix of Hen Egg-Shells

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Abstract
A study of the organic material of the hen egg-shell has been made by the use of recognized histochemical techniques. It has been found that, in the so-called spongy layer of the shell, the organic matrix consists of a protein / acid mucopolysaccharide complex. The organic material of the mammillary layer appears to be more concentrated in a central core, and is somewhat different in that it contains fat and a reducing substance. The protein / acid mucopolysaccharide complex is a collagen-like material, but is probably not collagen itself because the protein portion is low in hydroxyproline and the acid mucopolysaccharide is most likely mucoitin and not chondroitin sulphuric acid. The results are discussed in relation to shell calcification and it is suggested that the protein / acid mucopolysaccharide complex is first firmly attached to the keratin of the membrane, but once this is accomplished it links on to material of its own kind. Calcification proceeds simultaneously, but near the points of contact with the membrane (i.e. in the core of each mammilla) calcification is not so intense as it is in the rest of the shell.