A similar change takes place in pieces of unicellular animals, as best
shown by cutting off pieces of stentor. If _Stentor cœruleus_ is cut in
two pieces, as indicated in Fig. 7, each piece makes a new individual of
half size, but of proportionate form. The old peristome remains on the
anterior piece, but becomes reduced in size as the piece changes its
shape, and although it may be at first too large for the length of the
new piece, it ultimately reaches a size about proportionate to the rest
of the animal. The posterior piece is at first too long for the size of
the new peristome that is formed, but the latter becomes larger, until
the characteristic form has been reached. The change in form of the
stentor may take place in a few hours, and the result is brought about,
not by the development of new protoplasm over the cut-end, but by a
change of the old protoplasm into the new form. A similar experiment is
shown in Fig. 8, in which a stentor was cut into three pieces, each
piece containing a part of the old nucleus.
[Illustration: FIG. 8.--After Gruber. _Stentor cœruleus._ _A._ Cut into
three pieces. _B._ This row shows regeneration of anterior piece. _C._
This row shows regeneration of middle piece. _D._ This row shows
regeneration of posterior piece.]
_REGENERATION IN PLANTS_
In the higher plants the production of a new plant from a piece takes
place in a different way from that by which in animals a new individual
is formed. The piece does not complete itself at the cut-ends, nor does
it change its form into that of a new plant, but the leaf-buds that are
present on the piece begin to develop, especially those near the distal
end of the piece, as shown in Fig. 32, _A_, and roots appear near the
basal end of the piece. The changes that take place in the piece are
different from those taking place in animals, but as the principal
difference is the development of the new part near the end, rather than
over the end, and as in some cases the new part may even appear in new
tissue that covers the end, and, further, since the process seems to
include many factors that appear also in animals, we are justified, I
think, in including this process in plants under the general term
regeneration.
[Illustration: FIG. 9.--After Vöchting. _A_, _A¹_, _A²_. Pieces of
thallus of _Lunularia communis_ regenerating at the apical end. _B._
Piece of thallus cut in two in the middle line. _B¹._ Same split at
side of middle. _C._ An oblique piece extending to middle line. _C¹_,
_C²_. Oblique pieces not extending to middle line. _D._ Fruiting stalk
stuck into sand, producing new thallus above sand. _D¹._ Same laid
horizontally regenerating near base. _E._ Same with fruiting head cut
off. Regenerating at base. _E¹._ Twisted piece regenerating at two
points. _F._ Piece of ray of head regenerating near base. _F¹._ Same
with distal end of ray cut off. Also regenerating at base.]
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