THE POSSIBLE MAXIMUM VITAMINE CONTENT OF SOME 

 PHILIPPINE VEGETABLES 1 



By Harvey C. Brill and Cecilio Alincastre 

 (From the Laboratory of Organic Chemistry, Bureau of Science, Manila) 



Recent investigations have proved that a diet composed of the 

 proper proportions of fat, protein, and carbohydrates is not 

 necessarily an adequate diet for the maintenance of health and 

 growth. Other ingredients must be present; for example, in- 

 organic salts must be present in sufficient quantities. 2 



The absence of certain either-soluble 3 substances is prejudicial 

 to health. This substance has been named "fat soluble A" by 

 McCollum, 4 because of its presence in certain natural fats. 



Besides the above-required constituents, another substance, 

 known under the various names "vitamine," 5 "oryzanin," G and 

 "water-soluble B," T is necessary. 



No reliable quantitative methods for the determination of this 

 vitamine constituent have been perfected. In the processes used 

 for its isolation, much of it is undoubtedly broken up into simpler 

 substances, 8 or the antineuritic principle may be due to the 

 presence of a number of bodies. The latter assumption is con- 

 siderably strengthened by the results obtained by the use of 

 various substances 9 in the treatment of beriberi. A further 



1 Received for publication April, 1917. 



2 Osborne, T. B., and Mendel, L. B., Feeding experiments with isolated 

 food-substances, Publ. Carnegie Inst. Washington (1911), No. 156, Parts 

 I and II; and Science (1911), 34, 722. McCollum, E. V., and Davis, 

 M., Journ. Biol. Chem. (1913), 14, 40. Hart, E. B., and McCollum, E. V., 

 ibid. (1914), 19, 373. 



3 McCollum, E. V., and Davis, M., ibid. (1913), 15, 167. Osborne, T. B., 

 and Mendel, L. B., ibid. (1913), 15, 332. 



4 McCollum, E. V., Simmonds, N., and Pitz, W., ibid. (1916), 28, 153. 



5 Funk, C, Journ. Physiol. (1912), 43, 395. 



"Suzuki, U., Shimamura, T., and Odake, S., Biochem. Zeitschr. (1912), 

 43, 89. 



'McCollum, E. V., and Kennedy, C, Journ. Biol. Chem. (1916), 24, 491. 



5 For a brief bibliography of methods, see Williams, R. R., This Journal, 

 Sec. A (1916), 11, 49. 



8 Williams, loc. cit. and Journ. Biol. Chem. (1916), 25, 437. Williams, 

 R. R., and Saleeby, N. M., This Journal, Sec. B (1915), 10, 99. Williams, 

 R. R., and Seidell, Atherton, Journ. Biol. Chem. (1916), 26, 431. 



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