Studies on Enzyme Action. 



179 



olive oil and 0'53 grm. of glycerol, together with from 031 to 3'1 grm. of 

 water, i.e. from 3 to 30 molecules per molecule of glycerol. 



Table III. — Synthesis of Fat in Presence of various Molecular Proportions of 

 Water — showing Percentage of Acid combined.* 



o o 



Time 



No water 



3 mols. 



6 mols. 



15 mols. 



30 mols. 



hours 













1 



8-0 



7-8 



4-7 







2 



12-4 



12 -0 



7-3 



3 6 





4 



23 -9 



16 -3 



10 -3 





2 -4 



8 



33 -8 



19 -4 



12 -4 



5 -8 



35 



17 



37 -9 



22 -6 



13 -8 



6-0 



2-9 



30 



38 



22 -2 





5 9 



3-4 



50 



39 2 



22 -8 





6-7 





70 



38 -3 



21 -5 



15 -2 



6-8 



3 9 



Water also has a marked retarding effect on the rate at which the 

 hydrolysis is effected, as shown in the following table, in which is given the 

 percentage of acid formed on hydrolysing 5 grm. of olive oil in presence of 

 from 3 to 24 molecular proportions of water per molecular proportion of 

 glyceride. In these experiments, the difference between duplicate observa- 

 tions was somewhat greater than in the case of the synthetic experiments. 



Table IV. — Hydrolysis of Pat in Presence of various Proportions of Water — 

 showing Percentage of Acid liberated. 



Time 



3 mols. 



6 mols. 



9 mols. 



15 mols. 



24 mols. 



hours 













1 



30 -6 



27 -2 



19 -4 



13 -1 



9-6 



2 



45 -5 



40-6 



27 -4 



19 -1 



15 -9 



4 



56 -0 



61 -7 



46 -7 



36 -2 



23 -2 



8 



61 -3 



73 -1 



56-5 



49 -9 



36 -7 



17 



62 -0 



77 -0 



74 -8 



63 -0 



55 -2 



30 



62 -9 





83 -6 



75 -7 



66 -1 



50 



62 -6 





85 -2 



80 -2 



77 -2 



70 



62 -0 



78 -7 



84 -8 



82 -6 



81 -2 



It will be noticed that, in presence of 3, 6 and 9 molecular proportions of 

 water, when equilibrium is reached, the acidity of the system is approxi- 

 mately the same as that observed in the corresponding synthetic series : but 

 that when more water was present the effect on the enzyme was such that 

 the equilibrium was not reached during the experiment. 



* The results recorded are in all cases the means of duplicate experiments which 

 differed by about 1 per cent, at most. 



