1645 
III. chlorophyll + protoplasm + formaldehyde = chlorophyll ? + 
protoplasm + sugar etc. 
The assimilation process is undoubtedly much more intricate than 
the one studied by us for instance on account of the not as yet 
surveyable endo-enzymic action of the living protoplast, but here 
also we have first (I) a transformation of a definite system by means 
of a slight light intensity into another photo-active condition, sub- 
sequently (II) a photo-reaction requiring more light. 
Part (IID, the formation of sugar or amylum is a synthesis 
which is caused presumably by other enzymes and has a purely 
catalytic character. 
The fact that here are formed optically active compounds from 
carbon dioxide will presumably be due more to the asymmetric 
construction of the protoplasm than to that of the chlorophyll. Of 
the asymmetry of the chlorophyll nothing is known. It is possible 
because phytol, the unsaturated alcohol in the chlorophyll, is probably 
built up asymmetrically, but as the generation of sugar from for- 
maldehyde is more of a protoplasm function than an accelerating 
effect of chlorophyll, it is more rational to also look to the proto- 
plasm for the cause of the asymmetry of the amylum obtained. 
In the photo-process studied by us lies, moreover, the possibility 
for the realisation of a simple asymmetrically-proceeding photo-reaction. 
Starting from the system: 
optically active ketone + racemic alcohol = pinacone + aldehyde, 
we may expect that one of the optic antipodes will be oxidised to 
aldehyde more rapidly than the other. Whether this view is correct 
will have to be settled experimentally. 
3rd, The significance of the catalytic oxidation of the alcohols for 
the better understanding of the catalytic reactions particularly amounts 
to this, that we get here very plainly the impression that there is 
wanted a continuous, though it may be a small, supply of energy 
to keep the catalysis going. 
_ Only the ketone-alcohol mixture energetically activated by the light, 
namely the just mentioned yellow substance is capable of taking up 
the oxygen and if we wish to proceed with the alcohol oxidation 
we must continuously take care to promote this activation. 
The reaction : 
alcohol + oxygen = H,O + aldehyde (ketone) 
is thus kept active by a photo-action in the CO-group of the aromatic 
ketone. 
If we compare this with the effects of platinum or palladium this 
