[Vor. 3 
494 ANNALS OF THE MISSOURI BOTANICAL GARDEN 
25-30°С. for 21 days, after which they were titrated for phos- 
phorie acid which was calculated as phosphorus pentoxide 
according to the uranium acetate method described by Hawk 
(12, p. 413). Опе cubic centimeter of the solution of uranium 
acetate used was calculated to be equivalent to 4.65 mg. of 
phosphorus pentoxide. Two cubic centimeters of a solution 
of sodium acetate were added to 10 се. of the filtered sub- 
strate to be titrated. "This was brought to a boil and titrated 
TABLE XIV 
NUCLEASE ACTIVITY IN LENZITES SAEPIARIA 
Free Н,РО, as P,O, Net Р,О, in 25 cc. 
Amount of enzyme dispersion after 21 days ot ecd 
used with 25 cc. of 1 per cent 
Mycelium | Sporophore | Mycelium | Sporophore 
mg. mg. mg mg. 
5 cc. enzyme dispersion......... 40.11 59.31 28.49 37.83 
5 cc. enzyme dispersion (auto- 
UOS RE EE 11.62 2208 7 1 X... T ss 
5 cc. distilled water............. А Foe loo ee 
while hot. Potassium ferrocyanide was used as an indicator. 
Table хгу shows the results of these experiments, the figures 
given being the averages of duplieate experiments which were 
run in all cases. 
These results demonstrate the presence of nuclease both in 
the mycelial and sporophoral tissues of Lenzites saepiaria. 
However, no quantitative comparison can be drawn, for the 
mycelial dispersion was made from the mycelial mat in saw- 
dust. Compared with the results obtained by Kikkoji, the 
sporophoral dispersion is not so active as that in Cortinellus. 
This may be due to the fact that he used a more concentrated 
substrate and the juice of the fresh fungus direct. 
The fact that phyto-nuclein, an alpha-nucleoprotein, was 
used as a substrate, and that this was broken down to phos- 
phorie acid is a definite control on our results illustrating 
tryptie enzymes. The nucleoprotein must first be broken down 
by a nucleinase, which, according to the consensus of opinion, 
is a tryptie ferment. It is only after this enzyme has acted 
that the nucleic acid is free to be acted upon by nuclease. 
