536 OXIDATION FERMENTS 



the acceptor (AO + B = A + BO), and the autoxydator, A, 

 is thereby regenerated; and the final effect of the whole 

 process seems given by the equation, 2B + 2 = 2BO. A 

 in the above acts as a catalysator and simply conveys two 

 atoms of oxygen to two atoms of B. 



These points generally acquire increased physiological 

 interest from certain findings by Kastle and Loevenhart, in- 

 dicating that inorganic and organic peroxides (as lead-, man- 

 ganese- and benzoyl-peroxide) are capable of producing a 

 blue color with tincture of guaiac, just as vegetable tissues 

 do. 1 



With these introductory remarks, which naturally make 

 no pretense in any way to completeness, we may at once 

 proceed to consideration of the oxidases. 



Only the principal points are here presented, especially 

 as F. Battelli and Miss Lina Stern have recently collected 

 the general literature of the subject (over six hundred orig- 

 inal papers) in an excellent and easily accessible 

 monograph. 2 



Per oxidases and Oxygenases. In the confused mass of 

 observations which relate to the oxidation ferments a certain 

 degree of system was first developed by the extensive studies 

 of Bach and Chodat. Following these writers we use the 

 term peroxidases for those ferments which manifest their 

 influence only in the presence of peroxides of organic or 

 inorganic character, catalytically accelerating their disin- 

 tegration with the result of setting free active oxygen. Those 

 peroxides which we fancy as substances, not of fermentative 

 nature, but capable of taking up oxygen, acting only weakly 



1 Literature upon the Theory of Action of Oxidases: J. Loeb, Vorlesungen 

 iiber die Dynamik der Lebenserscheinungen, pp. 30-35, 1906; W. Manchot, 

 Verh. d. Phys.-Med. Ges., Wiirzburg, 39, 1908, S. A. ; J. H. Kastle, The Oxidases, 

 U. S. Hygienic Lab. Bull., 50, 24-30, 1909; C. Oppenheimer, Die Fermente, 3d 

 ed., 338-341; A. Montuori, Mem. della S'oc. ital. delle Scienze, ser. 3, Tomo XVI, 

 Roma, 1910; C. Engler and R. O. Herzog (Karlsruhe), Zeitschr. f. physiol. 

 Chem., 59, 327, 1909; F. Battelli and L. Stern, cf. next reference: pp. 251-259. 



2 F. Battelli and L. Stern (Geneva), Ergebn. d. Physiol., 12, 96-^268, 1912. 



