1909.] Destiny of Cholesterol in the Animal Organism. 241 



case of rabbits is excreted unchanged or whether any is absorbed or 

 destroyed during digestion. 



A large healthy rabbit was fed for eight days on a mixture of equal parts 

 of extracted bran and extracted wheat germ, and the fasces were collected 

 during the last seven days. The fasces, which when dried weighed 

 60 grammes, were extracted with ether and the ethereal solution saponified 

 with sodium ethylate. The unsaponifiable matter was obtained in the form 

 of a clear stiff oil, weighing - 4115 gramme. This was dissolved in 

 5 c.c. absolute alcohol and left to crystallise. A small quantity of greasy 

 crystalline matter separated, too small to be readily purified. It was not 

 cholesterol, but consisted of the crystalline " phytosterol " of bran, from 

 which it is difficult to free completely the original bran by simple extraction. 



The animal was then fed for one day on the same diet, the fasces being 

 discarded, and for the following eight days on a daily ration of f gramme of 

 phytosterol (from wheat-germ), 30 to 40 grammes of extracted bran and an 

 equal quantity of extracted germs of wheat, care being taken that the animal 

 ate the whole of the phytosterol — 2 grammes in all. It was then fed for 

 four more days on the same diet, but without phytosterol. The fasces 

 collected during the 12 days weighed, after drying, 189 grammes. The 

 animal remained in good health and its weight was constant all through the 

 experiment. The fasces were treated as before and yielded 2 - 3965 grammes 

 of greasy unsaponifiable matter. This was repeatedly recrystallisecl from 

 alcohol and two crops of pure phytosterol were obtained, the weights and 

 melting points of which were : crop 1, 0"6465 gramme, M.P. = 132° C. ; 

 crop 2, 0"603 gramme, M.P. = 132° C. The mother liquors and residues 

 were then evaporated to dryness and heated for a few minutes at a 

 temperature of 180° — 200° C. with benzoyl chloride. The product was then 

 poured into a suitable quantity of alcohol and allowed to stand. The 

 difficultly soluble crystalline matter which separated was recrystallised from 

 hot alcohol. In this manner 0"149 of white phytosterol benzoate was 

 obtained which on recrystallisation from ethyl acetate was obtained in 

 characteristic crystalline form and melted at 141° C. T3675 grammes 

 of pure phytosterol were therefore recovered out of the 2 grammes 

 administered. 



A consideration of the quantity of phytosterol recovered and also of the 

 relative quantities of unsaponifiable matter obtained in the two parts of the 

 experiment makes it clear that some of the phytosterol of the food was 

 either destroyed or absorbed, but most probably absorbed. 



Experiment VI. — In order to ascertain whether phytosterol given in the 

 food has the same effect as cholesterol. 



