J. R. B\trlong 



141 



ground fat-free powder was prepared from the palm kernels by repeated 

 grinding and extraction with ether at room temperature, and allowed to 

 act on soya bean oil and palm kernel fat under the necessary conditions. 

 The action with soya bean oil was the more satisfactory and the results 

 showed the prepared powder to possess fat-splitting properties, thus 

 establishing the presence of a lipase in palm kernels. The activity of the 

 prepared powder was low, a property which has been observed in the 

 case of other lipolytic seeds, namely, that the activity diminishes on 

 removing the fat. A fat-free powder treated with acetic acid according 

 to Tanaka's method (see J. S.C.I. 1912, xxxi, 885) showed less activity 

 than the above powder. 



Digestion 



Acidity in 

 CCS of N/2 NaOH 



Composition of ruacting mi.xturu 

 25 gms. of palm kernel cake + 50 c.c. of water 



,, „ meal „ „ 



25 gms. of p.k. cake + 100 c.c. of water previ- 

 ously heated at 97° C. for 4 hours, and then 



digested 



20 gms. of p.k. cake previously heated dry at 



120° C. for 2 hours; then 80 c.c. of water 



added, and digested 



20 gms. of p.k. meal similarly treated 



20 gms. p.k. cake previously boiled with 200 c.c 



water for J hour 

 20 gms. p.k. cake previously boiled with 200 c 

 water for 1 hour 



1 gm. of fat-free p.k. powder 4- soya bean oil + 



acetic acid 



Soya bean oil -^ acetic acid 

 Fat-free p.k. powder -I- acetic acid 



25 gms. of the following cakes -1- 100 c.c. of water: 

 Palm kernel, second sample 



Time 

 in 



hours 

 93 

 93 



Temp- 

 erature 

 in °C'. 



37 



37 



163 



Before 

 diges- 

 tion 

 5-3 



5-7 



5-3 



After 

 diges- 

 tion 

 9-4 

 11 05 



6-85 



Increase 

 41 

 5-35 



1-55 



Cotton seed. 



Ground nut, 



Coconut 

 Linseed ... 



decorticated 

 undecorticatcd 

 decorticated 

 undecorticatcd 



Having determined the best conditions for the action of palm kernel 

 lipase, the cake and meal were then examined for lipolytic activity. 

 Both developed acidity in a similar manner to the kernels, but the action 

 was irregular and slower. Experiments at a room temperature of 17° C. 

 showed that no appreciable action of the lipase takes place within a week 



