"Contributions to the Knowledge of the Cell and Its Vital Processes, Part II."
Walther Flemming
Director, Anatomical Institute
University of Kiel
Kiel, Germany
Excerpt:
Introductory Remarks on Terminology
Page 7...
"Further study of the division phenomena requires a brief discussion of the material which thus far I have called the stainable substance of the nucleus. Since the term nuclear substance could easily result in misinterpretation (see above), I shall coin the term chromatin for the time being. This does not indicate that this substance must be a chemical compound of a definite composition, remaining the same in all nuclei. Although this may be the case, we simply do not know enough about the nuclear substances to make such an assumption.7 Therefore, we will designate as chromatin that substance, in the nucleus, which upon treatment with dyes known as nuclear stains8 does absorb the dye. From my description of the results of staining resting and dividing cells ( 4, Section 1) it follows that the chromatin is distributed throughout the whole resting nucleus, mostly in the nucleoli, the network, and the membrane, but also in the ground-substance. In nuclear division it accumulates exclusively in the thread figures.
The term achromatin suggests itself automatically for the unstainable substance of the nucleus. The terms chromatic and achromatic which will be used henceforth are thus explained."
Partial References:
...
4. Flemming W, "Beitrage zur Kenntniss der Zelle
und ihrer Lebenserscheinungen, Theil I", Arch. Mikroskop. Anat. vol. 16,
pp. 302-436 (1878).
...
7. Klein E. "Observations on the Structure of Cells
and Nuclei", Quart. J. Micr. Sci., vol. 19, ns. 125 (1879).
8. Strasburger E, "Neue Beobachtungen uber Zellbildung
und Zelltheilung", Bot. Ztg., Nos. 17 and 18, 25 (1879).
...
Photograph, Walther Flemming, (1843-1905):
J. Cell Biol.. vol. 25, p. iii, (April, 1965), and, Stain Technol., (1933), vol. 8, no. 2, p. 47).
1. "Mechanisms of Repression and De-Repression within Interphase Chromatin".
2. "Activation of DNA Transcription within Repressed Chromatin".