ZYMOGENIC BACTERIA 205 



The action of diastase (amylolytic) on starch, (a), and in- 

 vertase on cane sugar, (b), may be given as examples. 



(a) C 6 H 10 O 5 + H 2 O = C 6 Hi 2 O 6 (Dextrose). 



(b) CuHaOu H- H 2 O = C 6 H 12 O 6 + CeH^Og 



(Dextrose and Levulose). 



There are no by-products such as carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) and 

 other gases produced without further oxidation. 



Some writers claim that antiseptics stop fermentation by 

 killing the microorganisms while they do not seriously im- 

 pair the enzymes, but it has been noted that enzymes in dilute 

 solutions are just as susceptible to the action of antiseptics. 

 The latest research on this subject indicates that all the 

 reactions which occur during the fermentation of carbohy- 

 drates are enzyme processes. 



As a matter of fact, enzymes are secreted by all cells classed 

 by Fischer and others as organized ferments, and it is the 

 enzymes which produce the chemical change. There is 

 abundant experimental evidence to support this statement. 

 Filtrates from cultures of bacteria, and bacteria killed by such 

 agents as thymol, contain enzymes of various chemical con- 

 stitutions. There is no sufficient basis for the division of 

 ferments into the two classes, organized and unorganized. 

 The chemical processes in both are fundamentally the same. 



Fermentation, therefore, is to be regarded as a composite 

 chemical process of oxidation, which is brought about by the 

 hydrating action of the intra-cellular amylolytic enzymes 



