136 GROWTH 



Vitamin C or anti-scorbutic vitamin, on the other hand, is 

 associated more especially with growing plants for, whereas 

 dried peas and lentils have no effect in preventing or in curing 

 scurvy, the same materials, if allowed to germinate, are very 

 effective anti-scorbutics, which shows that the active material 

 or vitamin is only secreted by the growing plant and is not 

 contained in the seed as such. 



It has been stated above that there is no definite knowledge 

 concerning the chemical constitution of the vitamins : various 

 suggestions have, however, from time to time been put forward 

 only to be refuted by subsequent work. At the moment, two 

 views are in the field : the one held by Williams * is that they 

 are related to hydroxypyridine and contain a betaine ring, the 

 other, that of Besszonofff is that they are polyphenolic sub- 

 stances related to hydroquinone.^ 



* Williams : Journ. Biol. Chem.," 1917, 29, 495. 

 f Besszonoff : " Compt. rend.," 1921, 173, 466. 



JFor further literature on the vitamins see Sherman and Smith: "The 

 Vitamins," Amer. Chem. Soc. Monograph Series, New York, 1922. 



