52 
Newcombe. — Cellu lose-E nzymes. 
II. Enzymes which dissolve Reserve Cellulose 1 . 
A. Extract of Barley -malt. 
In order to have a means of comparison for the ferments 
whose action has hitherto not been studied, a series of 
orientation experiments was made with the extract of Barley- 
malt, that is with the so-called diastase. The enzyme was 
obtained in the usual way, by extraction with water and 
precipitation with alcohol. Some means was employed to 
remove partially the nitrogenous material and sugar from 
the extract, and a very active enzyme was obtained by the 
following method : — at first sufficient alcohol was added to 
the watery extract to make the whole volume 40 °/ o alcoholic. 
The resulting precipitate must have contained, besides some 
amount of enzyme, a large quantity of sugar, dextrine, and 
proteid matter. This precipitate was rejected, and the filtrate 
raised to 80 °/ o alcoholic mixture. This precipitate now 
collected was used in several of the following experiments. 
In other cases, the dried precipitate last mentioned was 
partially redissolved in water, and again precipitated by 
adding alcohol to the watery solution. Thus there was 
obtained an extract tolerably free from carbohydrates, as 
determined by Lintner 2 . 
As a test for the action of the ferment upon reserve 
cellulose, sections of the endosperm of Hordeum vulgare 
and of the cotyledons of Lupinus albus were employed. A dry 
Barley-grain was split longitudinally, and cross-sections taken 
only from the middle region of the half-grain. Thus the 
sections were all closely alike in composition. They were 
immediately killed and extracted in chloroform, washed for 
fifteen to thirty minutes in water, and then left in dilute saliva 
for twenty-four hours, at about 22 ° temperature. To prevent 
1 For many preliminary tests for this part of the work, the author is indebted to 
Miss Edna D. Day, a graduate student in botany. Miss Day performed her work 
with rare patience, skill, and understanding. 
2 Jour, f. prak. Chemie, 142, p. 386. 
