XVII. — On the Ferments contained in the Juice of the 

 Pineapple [Ananassa satlva), together with some Obser- 

 vations ON THE Composition and Proteolytic action of 

 THE Juice. By R. H. Chittenden, assisted by E. P. Joslin 

 and F. S. Meara, 



Some time ago the writer's attention was called to the fact that 

 SeSor V. Marcano,* of Venezuela, had discovered the existence of 

 a proteid-digesting principle in plants of the order Bromeliaceae, of 

 which the pineapple is a well known representative, and that the 

 juice of the latter fruit was being made use of as a digestive agent 

 in the preparation of pre-digested foods.f So far as the writer is 

 aware, there is no scientific record of this discoveiy other than in a 

 short note contained in a recent number of a pharmaceutical journal, J 

 in which attention is simply called to Mai'cano's discovery and the 

 name "Jrome///*." suggested as an appropriate title for the hypotheti- 

 cal ferment. § Apparently, no study has been made of the nature of 

 the ferment presumably present in the juice, its mode of action, or 

 the character of the products resulting from such action. 



From a physiological standpoint the discovery of any ferment, 

 either in the vegetable or animal kingdom, is a matter of consider- 

 able importance, especially so in the plant kingdom, since the feeling 

 is widely gaining ground that proteid-splitting ferments must play 

 an important part in rendering the food material of plants available. 

 As in the animal kingdom, proteid food to be available for the 

 needs of the plant must be transformed into soluble forms fitted for 

 absorption and circulation. Hitherto, the best known illustration of 

 such a vegetable proteolytic ferment has been papain, present in the 

 juice of the papaw plant, but in the discovery of the proteolytic 

 action of pineapple juice we have what promises to be an equally 

 prominent illustration and one, moreover, which constitutes an addi- 



* Recently deceased. f By the Mosqiiera-.hdia Food Co. 



I Bulletin of Pharmacy, vol. v, p. 77, 1891. 



§ Since the above was written the writer's attention has been called to the follow- 

 ing reference contained in the Botanisches Centralblatt, No. 44. 1891: ■' E. Kayser, 

 Note sur les ferments de L'ananas, Annales de I'Institute Pasteur, 1891, No. 7." 

 To how great an extent this communication treats of the work about to be described 

 the writer has at present no means of judging, as the above periodical is not at hand. 



