FORMALDEHYDE 231 



dently unable to replace its amine group by a hydroxyl 

 group and thus effect its transformation. It is a matter of 

 importance in connection with the question of sugar forma- 

 tion from protein that the amidized sugar group in the 

 protein molecule is not capable of direct and immediate 

 transformation into grape-sugar. 



We have no proof that any of the alcohols or of the acids 

 of the sugar group (glyconic acid, saccharic acid, glycuronic 

 acid) take part in glycogen formation, which may be easily 

 appreciated when it is recalled that their transformation 

 into sugar presupposes complicated oxidation or reduction 

 processes. 



Formation of Glycogen from Formaldehyde. Nor has 



TT 



Grube's statement 30 to the effect that formaldehyde, | 



COHj 



which to all appearances plays an important role in the light- 

 synthesis of sugar in plants, is formed into glycogen when 

 perfused through the surviving liver, remained without 

 contradiction. 31 A synthetic process of this sort would not 

 be very hard to imagine. According to the latest studies of 

 E. Przibram and A. Franke, 32 the action of ultraviolet light 

 rays upon an aqueous solution of f ormalydehyde is sufficient 

 to produce the "simplest sugar, " glycolaldehyde, as well as 

 higher condensation products. The process may be sup- 

 posed to follow the adjacent schema with possible eventual 

 formation of sugar : 



FORMALDEHYDE GLYCOLALDEHYDE GLYCERINALDEHYDE 



H 



CH 2 .OH 

 COH CH 2 .OH 



+ > I > CH.OH > 



H COH H 



:OH 

 Limit of Saturation and Utilisation. The subject of as- 



30 K. Grube (Bonn), Pfliiger's Arch., 121, 636, 1908; 126, 585, 1909; 139, 

 428, 1911. 



81 B. S'chondorff and F. Grebe (Bonn), Pfltiger's Arch., 188, 525, 1911. 



82 R. Przibram and A. Franke, Sitzungsber. d. Wiener Akad., Mathem. 

 Naturw. Klasse, 71, lib, Feb., 1912. 



+ I COH + 



COH CC" 



