348 CHEMISTRY OF THE LEUOOMAINS. 



was at first believed to yield only adenin but eventually was found 

 to give also guanin besides cytosin and thymin (Kossel and Neu- 

 mann '). Although the pancreas was the organ from which origi- 

 nally adenin was isolated, yet according to Sang * it yields a nucleinic 

 acid (gaanylic) which on decomposition gives rise to only one nuclein 

 base — guanin, besides glycerin, phosphoric acid and pentose. On the 

 other hand Levene ^ obtained from a pancreas nucleinic acid, adenin, 

 guanin and traces of xanthin and hypoxanthin. He also found that 

 during auto-digestion of the pancreas the hexon bases and uracil 

 and possibly thymin formed. According to Kutscher * in pancreatic 

 and yeast auto-digestion the purin bases are set free but the xanthin 

 fraction is soon destroyed, leaving only adenin and guanin. 



From tubercle bacilli Ruppel isolated a protamin, " tuberculosa- 

 min " and a nucleinic acid, tuberculinic acid. According to Levene 

 the nucleinic acid from this germ is less stable than that from other 

 sources. It contains iron and on decomposition yields guanin and 

 adenin. 



The auto-digestion of yeast is essentially the same as that of the 

 pancreas and like the latter is due to a tryptic ferment. The prod- 

 ucts are leucin, tyrosin, asparaginic acid, ammonia, adenin, guanin, 

 at times hypoxanthin and xanthin, also the three hexon bases. 

 Carnin and butalanin have also been isolated. Kutscher has also 

 isolated a new body, CgH^N^O^ , which probably corresponds to the 

 uracil that Levene obtained from auto-digested pancreas. Geret and 

 Hahn' had previously shown that the yeast plasma contained an 

 energetic proteolytic enzyme which digested fibrin, egg albumin and 

 pepton. Leucin, tyrosin and hypoxanthin were formed. Similar 

 enzymes were observed in tubercle and typhoid bacilli, in sarcine, 

 and in lupine sprouts. In tryptic digestion of nuclein containing 

 proteid it is evident that adenin and other xanthin bases may be set 

 free the same as if the cleavage had been brought about by an acid. 

 The bases then would appear in the " antipepton " (p. 424). In auto- 

 digested adrenals adenin is probably present (p. 386). 



Adenin, guanin and xanthin together with cholin, diamins (?), 

 uric acid and urea have been obtained from brains (Gulewitsch).® 



From 10,000 liters of urine Kriiger and Salomon obtained 3.54 g. 

 of adenin besides large amounts of xanthin and its derivatives. 



It has also been observed in the liver and urine of leucocythsemic 

 patients (Stadthagen) ; its occurrence in this disease will be readily 

 understood when it is remembered that leukaemia is characterized by 

 the presence in the blood of an unusual proportion of the nucleated 



' Zeits. physiol Ohem., 22, 74. 

 ' Zeits. physiol. Chem., 31, 411. 

 ^ZeUs. physiol. Chem., 32, 541. 

 *Zeiti. pm/siol. Chem., 32, 66. 

 ^SericMe, 31,2336(1898). 

 'Zeits. physiol. Chem., 27, 50. 



