Nutrition Investigations. 269 



Cellulose digestion in the dog has been almost simultaneously stud- 

 ied by V. Hoesslin (46). Two dogs on a meat-fat diet to which was 

 added daily 2 grams of specially prepared white cabbage (containing 

 63.25 per cent of pure cellulose), for five periods of live days each, 

 excreted on the average 99.7 per cent and 94.5 per cent respectively. 

 This long experiment is significant as showing no adaptation of the 

 digestive glands to the type of food. By these independent workers 

 it seems now well established that the dog is unable to utilize cellulose. 



Hoffmann (42) has just published the results of some investigations 

 on the influence of cellulose on the nitrogen balance and on phlo- 

 rhizin-diabetes in the rabbit, from which it appears that after inges- 

 tion there is no increase of sugar excretion, and no glycogen formation, 

 yet he thinks that cellulose and hemicelluloses have a favorable influ- 

 ence in phlorhizin-diabetes.^ It seems to follow from this, that even 

 in case of herbivora cellulose is not utilized in the manner customary 

 for starch and sugar. 



DIGESTION AND UTILIZATION OF CELLULOSE BY MAN. 



A similar tabulation of results of feeding experiments on man, shows 

 that cellulose is not so well utilized as by herbivora, but does disap- 

 pear in appreciable amounts. With one exception, the cellulose in 

 all these experiments was administered as crude fiber. Hofmeister 

 (43) fed pure cellulose and reported 75.7 per cent soluble cellulose and 

 5.6 per cent insoluble cellulose digested. Konig and Reinhardt (53) 

 added to a diet rich in protein and fat, but free from cellulose, in sev- 

 eral experiments, green peas and ripe shelled peas, red cabbage, white 



filter, on which it is washed successively with hot water, dilute acetic acid, hot water, 

 alcohol and ether, and finally weighed. 



Scheunert and Lotsch claim that by Lohrisch's method the cellulose is altered in 

 character, and as much as 40 per cent lost in the process; and that subsequent treat- 

 ment of the recovered material causes an even greater per cent of loss, while by their 

 method the loss in the first case is not over 6.8 per cent, and that in the second case 

 even less. 



For the details of this controversy over method see the following: Simon and Loh- 

 risch; Zeitschrift fiir physiologische Chemie, Vol. 42, p. 55, (1904). Scheunert; 

 Berhner tieriirztHche Wochenschrift, No. 47, p. 82G, (1909). Scheunert and Lotsch; 

 Ibid., p. 867, (1909); also Biochemische Zeitschrift, Vol. 20, p. 10, (1909); and 

 Zeitschrift fiir physiologische Chemie, Vol. 65, p. 219, (1910). Scheunert and 

 Grimmer; Berliner tierarzthche Wochenschrift, No. 48, p. 152, (1910). Lohrisch; 

 Zeitschrift fiir physiologische Chemie, Vol. 69, p. 143, (1910). 



'Unfortunately the original paper was not accessible. 



