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Concerning this he says: "Si l'on dissout les ferments diastasiques animaux ou 

 végétaux dans de l'eau chloroformée ou ethérée on constate que leur activité n'est 

 en rien altérée ou diminuée; au contraire elle paraît jusqu'à un certain point plus 

 énergique" [Bernard p. 277]. Later Elfving [Elfving p. 11] and Liebig [Liebig p. 491] 

 ascertained the retardation of alcoholic fermentation through ether, which had 

 been observed by the above mentioned students. 



While it has been proved thai ferments can be affected by anaesthetics, the 

 relations of enzymes are not to be considered as fully explained, several students 

 being of opinion that narcotics have no influence on the latter, while others think 

 that the enzymes may be influenced by narcotics; Bartels and Grober subscribe to 

 the latter theory, having examined the action of chloroform upon pepsin [Grober 

 p 109— 118] [Bartels p. 497 — 511], and Kauffmann subscribes to the same opinion, 

 having used trypsin for his experiments [Kauffmann 1903, p. 434]. Fermi and 

 Pernossi found that dry trypsin, which is normally killed by a temperature of 

 160° is already destroyed by 80° when exposed to ether [Fermi & Pernossi p. 229]. 

 Some experiments on fermentation made by Johannsen on sweet-peas show that 

 etherization accelerates the fermentative power of the producing of sugar; yet the 

 author is of opinion that this circumstance is no proof that the appearance of the 

 latter is caused by the enzyme, but may be an indirect effect, the quantity of the 

 acid being greatly increased by the etherization [Johannsen 1897, p. 46] R. Berthel 

 has found that the anaesthesia produces a retardation of the action of tyrosinase 

 and of the enzyme splitting Homogentisinic acid, while the proteolytic enzymes 

 are not aflected by narcotics [Berthel 1902, p. 453 — 464]. Schulze and Castoro con- 

 sider this result fallacious, Berthel having used wrong analytic methods [Schulze & 

 Castoro 1906, p. 387 ff., p. 396 ff.]. 



The effect of anaesthesia on respiration and on COa-assimilation has been 

 specially examined. Concerning respiration the following is known: 



Gayon placed apples in closed glasses and found that they constantly pro- 

 duced CO., though deprived of free oxygen; if exposed to ether, this evolution of 

 carbon-dioxide was suspended [Gayon 1877, p. 1036]. CI. Bernard found that the 

 respiration, which he considered a chemical process, is not affected by ether and 

 chloroform [Bernard 1879 p. 272], a result on which Bonnier and Mangin founded 

 their researches of a separation of the respiratory and the assimilatory processes 

 without themselves examining the above mentioned matter [Bonnier and Mangin 

 p. 1 — 44]. Elfving noted a pronounced acceleration of respiration in seedlings of Pisum 

 and in leaves of Salix, when the plants were exposed to an atmosphere containing 

 4 to 15 per cent by volume of ether-damp [Elfving p. 5 — 9]. Lauren having made 

 careful researches into the effect of ether on the respiration of young seedlings (2 

 to 5 days old) has found different results according to the different sorts of plants: 

 In Ricinus and Lupinus the etherization produces an acceleration of the respiration 

 proportional to the quantity of the dose. In Pisum, Phaseolus and Cucurbita the 



D. K. D. Vldensk. Selsk. Skr., 7. Række, natuividensk. og ninthem. Aid. VI. 6. 29 



