CONTENTS. 



PREFACE 



CHAP. 



I. INTRODUCTION : 



THE LIVING PLANT 



II. THE SYNTHESIS OF CARBOHYDRATES 

 The factors .... 



External factors 



The raw materials 

 Water 



Carbon dioxide 

 Temperature 

 Illumination 



Chromatic adaptation 

 Internal factors 

 Chlorophyll 

 The unknown factor . 

 The products of carbon assimilation 

 The organic products of carbon assimilation 

 Hypotheses concerning the synthesis of carbohydrates by the 

 green plant .... 



Origin of the oxygen 



Formation of formaldehyde 



Polymerization of formaldehyde to sugars in vitro 



Summary of the evidence relating to the formaldehyde 



hypothesis ...... 



Carbon monoxide ..... 



Formaldehyde ...... 



Feeding experiments .... 



Production of sugar from formaldehyde 

 Summary of the opinion of Willstatter and Stoll 

 Other opinions 

 Formic acid 

 Maquenne's hypothesis 



III. THE SYNTHESIS OF FATS 



Formation from proteins 

 Origin from carbohydrates 



IV. THE SYNTHESIS OF PROTEINS 



Occurrence of nitrate 

 Occurrence of nitrite 

 The reducing mechanism 



" Reductase " 



Photochemical 

 Hydrolysis of protein 

 The origin of protein in the seed 



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