502 BIOLOGY OF THE MICRO-ORGANISMS. 



(a) Conditions of Life of the Mould Fungi. 



(a) Mould 1. Chemical Composition of the Mould Fungi. Until 



chemical recently we had no complete analysis of the mould 

 constitution. f un gj . nevertheless it was assumed that their composi- 

 tion was similar to that of the higher fungi. In the 

 case of the latter, the following numbers represent the 

 average result of various analyses : 



88 per cent, water, 3 per cent, nitrogenous and 5 

 per cent, non-nitrogenous organic materials, 1 per cent, 

 ashes; when dried in the air 17 per cent, water, 25 per 

 cent, nitrogenous and 45 per cent, non-nitrogenous 

 substances, 8 per cent, ashes. 



Sieber* has recently made some analyses of the mould 

 fungi, but, as it appears, without sufficient precautions 

 as to the purity of the materials used. The following 

 was the result (1) of a cultivation of penicillium and 

 mucor in a nutrient solution of gelatine and sugar : 



Soluble in Ether 187 per cent, of the dry substance. 



Alcohol... 6-9 



Ashes 4-9 



Albumen 29'9 



Cellulose 39'6 



(2) Of a cultivation in a saccharine ammoniacal solu- 

 tion, consisting mainly of Aspergillus glaucus : 



Soluble in Ether 11*2 per cent. 



Alcohol 3'4 



Ashes 07 



Albumen 28'9 



Cellulose 557 



As compared with the analysis of the yeast and fission 

 fungi (as given below), the marked excess of non-nitro- 

 genous substances is specially noticeable; this in the 

 main depends on the fact that in the case of the mould 

 fungi a large amount of cellulose is present, and that it 

 is only in the contents of the cells that albuminous sub- 

 stances exist ; and also on the fact that soluble saccharine 

 matters are present in recognisable quantity. 



* Journ.f. prakt. Chemie (2), 23. 412. 



