THE MOULD-FUNGI. 117 



the cells in this film extend further and further, and finally 

 form a complete mycelium. During the early fermentation 

 the fungus produced only I'l per cent, by volume of 

 alcohol, whilst Sacch. cerevisice gave 6 per cent.; but the 

 Monilia continued the fermentation, and produced, at the end 

 of six months, 5 per cent, by volume of alcohol, whilst the 

 culture-yeast did not give more than the quantity quoted 

 above. 



According to HANSEN, Monilia does not secrete invertine, but 

 nevertheless ferments cane-sugar, from which he concludes that 

 the cane-sugar is directly fermentable ; however, he indicates 

 the possibility that cane-sugar is converted into invert-sugar 

 in the interior of the cells, and that this latter form of sugar is 

 immediately utilised. 



FISCHER and LINDNER confirmed this by chemical analyses; 

 they showed that neither from the fresh nor from the dried 

 growth can any substance be extracted capable of hydrolising 

 cane-sugar. On the other hand, they were able to invert 

 cane-sugar by using the dried fungus itself, in presence of 

 anaesthetics, and also by using a fresh growth, part of the cells 

 being disrupted by grinding with glass-powder. The authors 

 infer from this that an inverting enzyme, which is insoluble 

 in water, forms a part of the living plasma, and that conse- 

 quently the fermentation of cane-sugar is preceded by inversion, 

 even in the case of Monilia. It has not yet proved possible to 

 isolate the ferment. 



Maltose, according to FISCHER, is split up both by fresh 

 and by dried Monilia, and also by an aqueous extract of a 

 dried growth ; he therefore infers that Monilia contains the 

 enzyme maltase recently discovered by him in Saccharomyces 

 cerevisise. 



According to BAU, Monilia also ferments dextrin generated 

 by diastase. 



Up to a recent date (1883), Monilia Candida was the only 

 fungus which was known to be capable of fermenting cane- 

 sugar, although not secreting invertine. Since then ZOPF, 

 BEIJERIXCK, BEHRENS, and other investigators have discovered 

 a few micro-organisms which possess this property, but the 

 phenomena must still be considered exceptional. It has 



