86 SIGNIFICANCE AND ORIGIN OF (DEFENSIVE) FERMENTS 



organism, and these may be equally injurious under 

 certain conditions. If these products of a gradual 

 decomposition constantly appear only in small quan- 

 tities and further decomposition is very rapid, then 

 the injury will be but trifling and transitory. When, 

 on the contrary, a large quantity of these products 

 of decomposition suddenly appear, they can produce 

 serious disturbances by their combined action. In 

 these processes it is not only their chemical nature, 

 their structure and confio-uration, that is of im- 



O 



portance ; we have to remember that, during the 

 decomposition of colloid substances, products arise 

 which exert an influence upon the osmotic pressure, 

 and may, in consequence, disturb the existing equili- 

 brium. What we observe in the plasma also takes 

 place, as we have already emphasized, in the interior 

 of the cells, and probably in a similar way. It may 

 be pointed out here that, when bodies of a simple 

 constitution, such as crystalloids, are introduced, the 

 organism is able to defend itself, not only by decom- 

 posing such disharmonious substances, but also by 

 excreting a part of them, at any rate, through the 

 kidneys. The same method of defence may be 

 resorted to when, during the decomposition of com- 

 plicated substances, simpler particles are produced. 

 In this case the excretion accelerates the ejection of 

 the disharmonious substance from the body. It is 

 true that, in doing this, the organism loses valuable 



