GLYCOGEN. 315 



or maltose, occur. In the later stage, the former of these, 

 possibly the latter, are always found. 



The early rapid amylolysis is the result of the kata- 

 bolic changes in the protoplasm accentuated as death occurs ; 

 it is, in fact, simply an exaggeration of the process of amy- 

 lolysis during life. The later slow amylolysis is due to an 

 enzyme which is probably developed during the disintegra- 

 tion of the liver cells. It is not due to acid, though lactic 

 acid is formed, and the action of micro-organisms is excluded 

 by another set of experiments. 



Passing now to the experiments of M. Bial (5) we find 

 that the question he attempts to answer is the same as that 

 which Dr. Paton tried to solve. The plan of the research 

 is, however, different, and his final conclusions are not quite 

 the same. So after giving a brief summary of his paper it 

 will be necessary to compare the two researches and try if 

 it is possible to reconcile the differences. 



Put briefly, the object of Bial's paper is to show that 

 Claude Bernard's second proposition is absolutely true ; the 

 sugar is formed from glycogen by the action of a diastatic 

 ferment. This diastatic ferment of the liver is probably 

 identical with the diastatic ferment of the blood ; at any rate 

 both form dextrose and not maltose from starch. 



The most prominent opponent of Bernard's views on 

 this subject in former years was Dr. Pavy. Dr. Pavy was 

 unable to find more sugar in the blood of the hepatic vein 

 than in that of the portal. He therefore concluded that 

 the formation of sugar post mortem was different from what 

 occurs during life. This view of Pavy's, resting on a narrow 

 vitalistic basis, has been also upset by the discovery of 

 better methods of estimating sugar in blood. Bial, there- 

 fore, reserves his powder and shot for a more recent oppo- 

 nent of Bernard's views, namely, Seegen. Seegen (6) 

 preaches the revolutionary doctrine that the sugar which 

 leaves the liver is not formed from glycogen at all, but 

 from peptone, or even from fat. Seegen has made very few 

 converts : his method of experiment and of reasoning is 

 such that any one accustomed to chemico-physiological 

 investigations can easily detect his fallacies. Besides this, 



