CHEMIC COMPOSITION OF THE HUMAN BODY. 29 



lactic acid bacillus it is decomposed into lactic acid, and finally into 

 butyric acid, as expressed in the following equation: 



C 12 H 22 O n + H 2 = 4 C 3 H 6 3 

 Lactose + Water = Lactic Acid. 



2C ? H 6 O 3 = C 4 H 8 O 2 + 2CO 2 4- 2H 2 



Lactic Acid = Butyric Acid + Carbon + Free 



Dioxid Hydrogen. 



Maltose is a transformation product of starch, and arises when- 

 ever the latter is acted on by malt extract or the diastatic ferments 

 in saliva and pancreatic juice. The change is expressed by the fol- 

 lowing equation: 



2 C 6 H 10 5 + H 2 = C 12 H 22 O n 



Starch. Water. Maltose. 



Maltose crystallizes in the form of white needles, which are 

 soluble in water and in dilute alcohol. It is dextro-rotatory. In 

 the presence of ferments and dilute acids maltose undergoes hydra- 

 tion and decomposition, giving rise to two molecules of dextrose. 

 It has a reducing action on cupric hydroxid. Fermentation is readily 

 caused by yeast, but whether directly or indirectly by inversion is 

 somewhat uncertain. 



Osazones. All the sugars which possess the power of reducing 

 cupric hydroxid are capable of combining with phenyl-hydrazin, 

 with the formation of compounds termed osazones. The osazones 

 so formed are crystalline in structure, but have different melting- 

 points, varying degrees of solubility and optic properties, all of 

 which serve to detect the various sugars and to distinguish one from 

 the other. Of the different osazones, phenyl-glucosazone is the 

 most characteristic, and occurs in the form of long, yellow needles. 

 It may be obtained from dextrose by the following method: To 50 

 c.c. of a dextrose solution add 2 gm. of phenyl-hydrazin and 2 gm. 

 of sodium acetate, and boil for an hour. On cooling, the osazone 

 crystallizes in the form of long, yellow needles. 



THE FATS. 



The fats constitute a group of organic bodies found in the tissues 

 of both vegetables and animals. In the vegetable world they are 

 largely found in fruits, seeds, and nuts, where they probably originate 

 from a transformation of the carbohydrates. In the animal body 

 the fats are found largely in the subcutaneous tissue, in the marrow 

 of bones, in and around various internal organs and in milk. In 

 these situations fat is contained in small, round or polygon-shaped 

 vesicles, which are united by areolar tissue and surrounded by blood- 

 vessels. At the temperature of the body the fat is liquid, but aftei 

 death it soon solidifies from the loss of 



