May, 1020] PHYSIOLOGY 253 



1746. Gatin, C.-L. La maturation artificielle des fruits. [Artificial ripening of fruit.) 

 Jour. Agric. Tropic. 19: 256 260. L919. A brief review of the wrork of other investigators 

 relative to the chemical changes taking place in the ripening of fruit, and of means devised 

 for artificially ripening such fruit as the Japanese persimmon.—/. D. Luci 



1747. Heyl. Frederick \V. The yellow coloring substances of ragweed pollen. Jour. 

 Amer. Chem. Soc. 41 : 1285 L289. 1919. 



1748. Lewis, C. O. Premature deterioration of fruit. Better Fruit 13 l : 5-7. Jan., 1919. 

 —See Bot. Absts. 3, Entry 1642. 



1749. Power, Frederick B., and Victor K. Chesnut. Ilex vomitoria as a native source 

 of caffeine. Jour. Amer. Chem. Soc. 41: 1307-1312. 1919.— See Bot. Absts. 3, Entry 17:51. 



1750. Beijehixck, M. \Y. The significance of the tubercle bacteria of the Papilionaceae 

 for the host plant. Proc. Roy. Acad. Sci. Amsterdam 21: 183-192. 1918. [Also published 

 under: De beteekenis van de bakteri'en der Papilionaceen knolletjes voor de voedsterplant. 

 Versl. K. Akad. Wetenschappen Amsterdam 26: 1456-1465. 1918.] — The author attempts to 

 discredit the view that Bacillus radicicola either grown free or in nodules fixes nitrogen, and 

 offers the hypothesis that the bacteria are only indirectly concerned, the implication being 

 that the protoplasm of the host plant is the catalyst responsible for the fixation. The evi- 

 dence is, in part, admittedly circumstantial. Robinia pseudo-acacia has few and small nod- 

 ules, yet the author believes that much atmospheric nitrogen is fixed, and therefore the fix- 

 ation by the few nodules must be at an enormous rate or else the nitrogen is fixed by the host 

 plant. -rScarcity of nodules is reported for such shrubs as Sarothamnus vulgaris, Sparlium 

 scoparium, Genista anglica, and Genista pilosa growing in unfertile soils, and the author con- 

 siders this as evidence for the fixation of nitrogen by the host. — Experimentally, the author 

 reports no nitrogen fixation by the free bacteria. Fixation experiments were made with 100 

 grams to 1000 grams of nodules of yellow lupine. These were placed in wide glass tubes and 

 kept from 12 to 20 days and then gas analyses made. Evidence for nitrogen fixation was ob- 

 tained neither in this experiment nor when nodules on roots attached to portions of the stem 

 were used. — Experiments were also made using 15 grams of nodules of Robinia pseudo-acacia 

 and 10 to 20 grams of nodules of Vicia faba with like results. — L. Knudson. 



1751. Blanck. [Rev. of Blanck, E. Beitrage zum bakteriologisch-chemischen Um- 

 satz der Milcheiweissstoffe, insbesondere Galalith, im Boden. (Contribution on the bacterio- 

 logical chemical exchange on proteins of milk, especially galalith, in soils.) Landw. Versuchsst. 

 90 : 17. 1917.] Biedermann's Zentralbl. Agrikulturchem. 47 : 283-284. 1918.— See Bot. Absts. 

 3, Entry 1796. 



1752. Spitzer, George, R. H. Carr, axd W. F. Epple. Soft corn— its chemical compo- 

 sition and nitrogen distribution. Jour. Amer. Chem. Soc. 41 : 1212-1221. 1919.— The authors 

 found the nitrogen content not greatly affected by the degree of maturity of soft maize. 

 Considerable of the nitrogen is present as amide, and it seems to be formed at the expense of 

 the zein. Glutelin seems to be the most abundant protein, zein next, and globulin last. "The 

 amide or non-protein nitrogen content and the acidity in soft, moldy corn are quite high." 

 Amide nitrogen may be taken as a basis for determining the maturity of maize. — J. M. Bran- 

 no n. 



METABOLISM (ENZYMES, FERMENTATION) 



1753. Meyerhof, Otto. Uber den Zusammenhang von Atmung und Giirung. [On the 

 connection between respiration and fermentation.] Naturwissenschaften7: 253-259. 1919. — 

 The hypothesis, based on Pfeffer's and Pfliiger's understanding of intramolecular respiration, 

 that all respiration starts with anaerc bic changes, that the metabolic products largely occur as 

 alcohol when oxygen is absent, while these are oxidized further to carbon dioxide and water 



