210 



M. INOUYE ; 



According to the results obtained by Pellet, only about 5 % of 

 the entire nitrogen is non-albuminoid, while in the Japanese 

 soya bean, according to the analysis of O. Kcllncr and Kuro- 

 shima, it amounts to 7.1 %. 



Meissl and Booker (Chem. C. 13., 1883, p. 619) found that 

 there arc no gluten-proteids contained in the soya bean and only 

 very small quantities of amido-compounds. They extracted the 

 beans both with dilute potash and also with 1 % solution of 

 sodium chloride, and found in both cases one and the same pro- 

 teid, which proved to be a casein closely related to milk-casein 

 and to the legumins of other leguminous plants. 



I have confirmed the absence of starch noticed by Kcllncr 

 in the Japanese soya bean, by repeated tests with iodine, while 

 observations made in Europe have shown the presence of a very 

 small quantity of starch granules. The numbers given above by 

 Pellet for starch include also dextrin- like bodies, which were 

 closely examined by E. Schulze, who found them to consist of 

 two kinds of galactans. He also discovered in them some cane 

 sugar and determined the amount of lecithin to be 1.64 %. 



Stiitgl and Moyawski (Chem. C. B., 1S86, p. 724) found a 

 very active diastatic enzyme, possessed by the soya bean much 

 more largely than by many other leguminous seeds. The diges- 

 tibility of the bean was determined by Giissinan. He found that 

 go % of the protein present is digestible, 89.8 % of the fat, and 

 14.5 % of the crude fibre. 



The efforts to prepare an easily digestible food from soya 

 beans led to the preparation of miso and natto, two kinds of 

 vegetable cheese, which were investigated some time ago in the 

 laboratory of this College.* 1 ! 



But the most interesting preparation is tofu, which consists 

 principally of the protein-matter of the soya bean, and which, 

 according to the investigation of Prof. Osawa in Tokyo, is as 

 easily digestible as beef. This preparation is freshly made every 

 day, and sold in form of tablets about 10 cm. broad, 2 cm. 

 thick, and 25 cm. long, is of snow-white appearance, and of the 

 consistency and taste of freshly precipitated casein of milk, but 



(1) On the preparation of miso, by O. Kcilncr, this Bulletin, Vol. I, No. 6. On 

 natto, by Yale; Bulletin Vol. II., No. 2. 



