Haemocuprein and hepatocuprein, copper-protein compounds of blood and liver in mammals

Abstract

The occurrence of copper in plant and animal tissues has been known for more than a century. Buchholtz (1816) and Meissner (1817) reported its presence in plants, Boutigny (1833) found it in animal tissues, and its presence in tissues of man was discovered by Devergie and Hervy (1838) and Devergie (1840). That copper is present in human blood has been recognized since the work of Deschamps (1849), and this fact was, later, generally accepted (Porter 1875). Its concentrations in the red blood corpuscles and serum of man and different animals of different ages, under normal and pathological conditions, have been estimated by several workers. As to the distribution of copper between red blood corpuscles and serum, the statements are still somewhat contradictory.