Abstract
FOLLOWING on the description many years ago1 of a growth-inhibiting constituent of yeast, a number of plant extractives2 and pure substances3 have been reported to possess similar activity. A distinctive feature in the case of most of them is that in cultures in vitro the growth of connective tissue cells is inhibited, but not that of epithelia. From this the conclusion was drawn that such action, if exerted in vivo, would lead to the retardation of growth in young animals since this depends upon the growth of their connective tissue, without interference with the vitality of such other tissues as the skin and blood-forming organs, the cells of which continue to multiply throughout normal life. A further inference was made that the growth of tumours might similarly be inhibited, since this too depends upon a parallel growth of stroma. These expectations were, in fact, to some extent realized4, but owing to the unsatisfactory nature of the material used the experiments were unconvincing.
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HEATON, T., ROBINSON, G. Biological Properties of a Substance Isolated from Wheat Middlings and of Hydroxymethylfurfuraldehyde. Nature 162, 570 (1948). https://doi.org/10.1038/162570a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/162570a0
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