Suppression of metachromasia of galactogen by organic solvents and its relation to their dielectric constants

Summary In order to elucidate the relationship between the dielectric constants of various organic solvents and their capacity to abolish the metachromasia of galactogen localised in the albumen gland of a land snail, effects of various alcohols, ketones, esters and ethers on the metachromasia were investigated. The metachromasia was labile to all these solvents and its suppression depended on their dielectric constants. The higher the dielectric constant of a solvent the lower was its capacity to suppress the metachromasia of galactogen. Such a relationship was not a generalised phenomenon but it was true within a group of solvents with a specific reactive group. The four groups of solvents can be arranged in a series: ethers, esters, alcohols, ketones, in order of their increasing efficiency to abolish the metachromasia. Saturated or unsaturated nature of the solvent also affected such a suppression.