326 LECTURE XIV. 



by the ether, is partly because some of the fat is inclosed in the cells, 

 while another portion is undoubtedly present in combination with other 

 substances. In many of the investigations dealing with this problem, 

 this latter fact has not been sufficiently taken into consideration in the 

 estimation of the total fat present. 



The old observation of the formation of grave-wax, or adipocere, has 

 been brought forward as evidence of the production of fats from albumin. 1 

 By this process we understand the production of a wax-like mass from a 

 corpse. The albumin disappears little by little from the muscles, and fat 

 takes its place. This characteristic change is especially noticeable in moist 

 burying-places, where a slow decomposition proceeds in the presence of a 

 minimum supply of oxygen. By carefully following this process, and 

 especially by direct experiments, it has been proved that there is no such 

 conversion of albumin into fat, but that the fat already present in the 

 body is responsible for the production of adipocere. This is mainly due 

 to the fat present already in a given locality, and to such infiltrated fatty 

 masses as may be deposited there by the water. Moreover, if it had been 

 proved that the fat arose from albumin in this process, it would possess 

 no bearing on the production of fat from albumin in the living animal 

 organism. It would be conceivable that lower organisms, such as bacteria, 

 etc., are capable of effecting such conversions. The formation of fat from 

 albumin during the ripening of cheese, for example, is attributed to the 

 interaction of fungi. 2 



Hoffmann, 3 however, has carried out a notable investigation, which is 

 considered a proof of the transformation of albumin into fat. He collected 

 the eggs of flies, and determined the amount of fat present in a number of 

 them, while the others were cultivated upon defebrinated blood. This 

 contained . 032 per cent of fat, and the fly-eggs 4 . 9 per cent. The maggots 

 cultivated upon the blood finally showed at least 10 times as much fat as 

 was present in the eggs and blood. Two objections can be raised, for, in 

 the first place, the method used for estimating the fat is not entirely 

 above criticism, while, in the second place, this conversion of albumin into 

 fat may have been brought about by means of bacteria, which developed 

 rapidly in the blood. O. Frank, 4 who repeated the experiment, using meat, 



1 Cf. J. Kratter: Z. Biol. 16, 455 (1880). Erman: Vierteljahresschrift gericht 

 Med. 37, 51 (1882). E. Salkowski: Festschrift fur Virchow's Jubilaum, p. 23 (1891). 

 K. B. Lehmann: Sitzber. physikal. med. Gesel. Wurzburg (1888). E. Voit: Sitzber. 

 Gesel. Morph. und Physiol. Miinchen, 4, 50 (1888). F. Kraus: Arch. exp. Path. 

 Pharmak. 22, 174 (1887). 



2 K. Windisch: Arbeiten aus dem Kaiserl. Gesundheitsamte, '17 (1900). H. 

 Jacobsthal: Pfliiger's Arch. 54, 584 (1893). 



8 F. Hofmann: Z. Biol. 8, 153 (1872). 



4 O. Frank: loc. tit. Z. Biol. 35, 549 (1897). 



