MATERIAL TRANSFORMATIONS IN THE PLANT 1 65 



Dormant Sprouted 



Bulbs Buias 



Total dry weight 3-8246 4.7716 



Total nitrogen 0.1614 0.1595 



Nitrogen of protein 0.0517 0.0838 



Nitrogen of substances precipitated by phospho- 



tungstic acid 0.0252 0.0244 



Nitrogen of asparagin 0.0121 0.0163 



Nitrogen of other compounds 0.0744 0.0350 



Protein nitrogen (percentage of total nitrogen) 32.0 52.5 



Hettlinger^ and Zaliesskii^ showed also that aformation of proteinis brought 

 about by the wounding of onion bulbs and that this proceeds with considerable 

 velocity. The same amount of protein was formed in four days after wounding 

 as was found after a month of normal sprouting in darkness. An onion bulb 

 was cut into four equal parts, one part being dried and the three others being 

 left in darkness for four days. Analysis showed that the protein nitrogen of 

 the dried portion amounted to 32.0 per cent, of the total nitrogen, while the 

 corresponding precentages for the other portions were from 49.4 to 51.8. 



Hansteen' showed that various nitrogenous substances are suited to the 

 formation of protein. Zaliesskii and Kovshov* showed that protein formation 

 in wounded onion bulbs occurs only in the presence of oxygen. According to 

 Zaliesskii,' the process of protein transformation is altered when the surrounding 

 atmosphere contains ether vapor. He showed that the axial organs of Lupinus 

 augustif alius, when the cotyledons had been removed, were able to carry on pro- 

 tein synthesis in darkness if supplied with carbohydrates and nitrogen by means 

 of a nutrient solution, and that this process was accelerated by the presence of 

 ether vapor. 



Present knowledge regarding the formation of nucleins in plants is very in- 

 complete. It is well known that growth is generally accompanied by nuclein 

 synthesis. Although the total protein content decreases during the germination 

 of seeds in darkness, nevertheless the nucleo-proteins increase during the first 

 stages of germination.* Fig. 88 shows that the germination of wheat in dark- 

 ness is correlated with an increase in proteins indigestible in gastric juice, the 

 amount of which is nearly proportional to the amount of nucleo-proteins. 



Wounding produces increased vital activity. The work of Kovshov^ shows 

 that the formation of protein is accelerated in wounded onions. This increased 

 synthesis results mainly in proteins indigestible in gastric juice, but there is no 



* HettUnger, A., Influence des blessures sur la formation des mattfires prot^iques dans les plantes. ' Rev, 

 g€n. bot. 13: 248—250. 1901. 



2 Zaleski, W., Beitrage zur Kenntniss der Eiweissbildung in den Pflanzen. Ber. Deutsch. Bot. Ges. 19 : 

 33I-33P. 1901. 



' Han6teen,,Barthold, Ueber Eiweisssynthese in gmnen Phanerogamen. Jabrb. wiss. Bot. 33 : 417-486. 

 1899. 



* KoTchoff, J.» L'influence des blessures sur la formation des matidres protfiiques non digestibles danS 

 les plantes. Rev. g6n. bot. 14: 449-462. 1902. 



^ Zaleski, W., Zur Aetherwirkung auf die Stoflfumwandlung in den Pflanzen. (Vorlaufige Mittheilung.) 

 Ber. Deutsch. Bot. Ges. 18: 292-296. 1900. 



* Palladin, W., Recherches sur la correlation entre la respiration des plantes et les substances azotSes 

 actives. Rev. g^n. bol:. 8 ; 225-248. 1896. Zaliesskii, 1907. [See note 3, p. IS9.] 



' Kovchoff, 1902. [See note 4, this page.] 



