RESERVE MATERIALS OF PLANTS. 123 



aPhytalbumose. — Soluble in cold or boiling water, not 

 precipitated from neutral solution by NaCl or 

 MgS0 4 but thrown down after long shaking in 

 slightly acid solution. Martin considers this body 

 to be much like Kuhne's protalbumose (15). It is 

 probably a constituent of Vines' hemialbumose. 



/3Phytalbumose. — Soluble in cold water ; precipitated by 

 heat in two stages, the first precipitate falling at 

 78 to 82°C. and the second at 83° to 95°C. 

 Not precipitated by dialysis. 



Both these albumoses give the characteristic be- 

 haviour of their nitric acid precipitate. 



Martin points out the resemblance between the 

 latter body and Kuhne's hetero-albumose. 



In 1885 the writer (16) had the opportunity of examining 

 the latex of several trees, particularly Mimusops globosa, 

 Para?neria glandulifera and Broshmtm galactodendron. 

 Mimusops glob osa is the source of the gum balata of British 

 Guiana. Its latex contains an albumose which is soluble 

 in distilled water, and is not coagulated by boiling in neutral 

 solution. At a temperature approaching 7o°C. it is slowly 

 thrown down by nitric acid. It is not precipitated by 

 acetic acid and potassic ferrocyanide. 



Parameria is a member of the Sapotacese. Its latex 

 contains a body more like a peptone than any of the fore- 

 going, being capable of dialysis. It does not, however, 

 give easily the biuret reaction so characteristic of the 

 latter group. It is convertible into peptone by the action 

 of pepsin. 



Brosimum galactodendron is the so-called "cow-tree" of 

 South America and is a member of the Artocarpese. It has 

 been known to yield a rich milky latex since 1823, when it 

 was the subject of a paper by Boussingault and Mariano de 

 Rivero, in which attention was called to its containing what 

 the authors regarded as vegetable fibrin. The chief pro- 

 teid present in the latex is an albumin, which is soluble in 

 water and coagulates on heating to 68°C. or by treat- 

 ment with alcohol. After removal of this body the latex 



