THE PHILIPPINE 



Journal of Science 



A. Chemical and Geological Sciences 

 AND the Industries 



Vol. X JANUARY, 1915 No, 1 



PAPAIN: ITS COMMERCIAL PREPARATION AND DIGESTIVE ^ 



PROPERTIES (^ Jl/' 2 3 1926 ik\ 



By DAVID S. Pratt ^^^^Nal MUS.t'^'^^ 



{From the Laboratory of Organic Chemistry, Bureau of Science, 



Manila, P. I.) 



TWO PLATES AND 4 TEXT FIGURES 



Papain is the name usually given to the proteolytic enzyme 

 elaborated by Carica papaya L. and secreted in the milky latex 

 that forms a prominent characteristic of the plant. The papaya 

 tree is normally an erect plant, from about 5 to 10 meters in 

 height at maturity, seldom branched, with a soft trunk and 

 a crown of large palmately lobed leaves. The plentiful fruits 

 are melon shaped, up to 40 centimeters in length, with a golden- 

 orange pulp and numerous small black seeds. They are used 

 to a large extent in many tropical countries as a refreshing 

 food, although possessing little actual nutritive value.^ 



The name papaya is said to have been derived from the Carib 

 ababai, and has been further altered to the English term pa- 

 paw. The plant is a native of the Caribbean region. Gulf of 

 Mexico, and South America, and has spread thence to many 

 parts of the world. It was introduced into India early in the 

 seventeenth century, and has been cultivated there ever since. 

 Suitable conditions for its growth exist in many other countries, 

 among which the Hawaiian Islands, Assam, Ceylon, and the 

 Philippine Islands deserve special mention. 



Various medicinal uses of papaya have been known foT: many 



' Pratt and del Rosario, This Journal, Sec. A (1913), 8, 69. 



131717 



