1127 



tried to found tlie "fbrmnlatioii of the nature and course of the 

 reaction" especiall}' on experiment 3, in which phosphates acted as 

 a buffer against hirge changes of tlie true acidity. 



Since the results, as published, of this experiment, were incompa- 

 tible with the experiments and iheory of the present papers, the 

 author has recalculated them on the basis of van Si, ijkk's own theory. 



The remarkable conclusion is, that even van Sijjkk's own basal 



experiment was not at all in accordance with liis own theory, the 



c being clearly far from constant : 



TABLE III of VAN Slijke. 

 £• = 0,1 t = 60. 



2. The genera] equation of urease action. 



The investigations, published in this paper, were again based on 

 the author's hypothesis, that an enzyme acts by radiation and that 

 an enzyme particle contains the same molecule, which is liberated 

 or acted upon by this enzyme, in some active state. In his first 

 papers on enzyme action (Proc. K. Akad. Wetensch. Amsterdam 

 1904; Zeitschr. physikal. Chem. XL, p. 456, 1904 ; Biochem. J. VII, 

 p. 559, 1913) the author has already suggested, that the radiation, 

 by which enzymes exert their action, is due to the electrons, forming 

 part of the atoms. The recent development of the ele<^tron theory 

 of matter has revealed, that, every atom being a complex of positive 

 and negative electrical units, all chemical action is in reality an 

 electric phenomenon. In a general way it may be stated, that in 

 an atom the electrons, moving round the positive nucleus, will 

 have some effect e.g. of electromagnetic induction on other atoms 

 in their neighbourhood. 



73* 



