THE POSITION OF ALCOHOLASE. 481 



incapability of dialysing, except with difficulty or under certain 

 conditions ; in its greater susceptibility to high temperatures 

 though this is less noticeable in the dry state than when in solu- 

 tion in which particular it is on a level with urase and the 

 inverting enzyme of Monilia Candida; and also with regard to the 

 merely occasional appearance of the enzyme in the living cell in 

 which respect, nevertheless, analogies can be found in the vegetable 

 kingdom. The only important difference, however, consists in the 

 greater amount of heat disengaged by this enzyme, and the slow- 

 ness of its action. NEUMEISTER (I.) is firmly convinced on this 

 account, that the question is one of collaboration between various 

 substances outside the living cell, which substances have re- 

 tained the powers they originally possessed in the protoplasm. 



The next question that arises is the allocation of alcoholase to 

 its proper sub-group among the enzymes, and also whether it may 

 be present as zymogen in the yeast cell. BUCHNER (X.) proposes 

 to class alcoholase as the representative of a new sub-group 

 fermentative enzymes of the large class of enzymes, whilst 

 DUCLAUX (XXII.) ranges it with the enzymes of nutrition, and 

 WROBLEWSKI (Y.) places it in the third group of catalysers, which 

 are closely allied to the morphotic constituents of protoplasm. 



E. Buchner does not assume the presence of zymogen in the 

 yeast cell, but WROBLEWSKI (V.), on the other hand, is partly 

 in favour of the existence of such a body. 



The method employed in the preparation of sterile permanent 

 yeast may also be applied, with advantage, to other ferments. In 

 this way E. BUCHNER and J. MEISESTHEIMER (III. and I.) have 

 investigated the enzymes of fermentation by fission fungi, namely, 

 lactic and acetic fermentations, as well as by Monilia Candida 

 and a lactose yeast ; and the same course was adopted by 



F. ROTHENBACII and L. EBERLEIN (I.) with Bacterium Pasteuri- 

 anuin. In all these cases, fermentation, or the production of the 

 corresponding acid, was obtained by using sterile preparations of 

 this kind. The same method can also be applied with higher 

 plants, especially when labile enzymes are in question. An 

 enzyme similar to alcoholase was found by STOKLASA, JELINEK, 

 and YITEK (L), and STOKLASA and, SIMACEK (I.) in sugar beet, 

 peas, potatoes, flowers, meat, and lung tissue ; by MARP- 

 MANN (YIII.) in honey ; by SIMACEK (I.) in pancreas ; and by 

 AUNHEIM and ROSENBAUM (L) in pancreas, muscle, and liver. 

 Living yeast is often preferably employed in dealing with 

 questions of a general nature relating to enzymes ; and it is 

 probable that the new preparation, zyinin (see p. 474), may be 

 suitable for these investigations, on account of its excellent keep- 

 ing properties, ease in weighing, and definite fermentative power. 

 Indeed, experiments of this kind have already been conducted 

 with zymin by PALLADIN (I.), TELESNIN (I.), GROMOW and 

 GRIGORIEU (I.), HERZOG (III.), and EULER (I.). 



