198 Report oF DEPARTMENT OF BACTERIOLOGY OF THE 
contrasted with the surface erosion (‘ “Sea Ok 
starch grains by diastase." 
Newcombe (1899) published the results of studies upon the 
commercial preparation, “ taka-diastase,” which is the enzym- 
containing precipitate from the fungus Aspergillus oryzae. 
His tests upon barley endosperm sections showed a cytolytic 
action. The walls became hyaline, first near the middle, this 
change then progressing through the inner lamellae toward 
the cell lumina. Following this, these wholly hyaline walls 
(inner lamellae) began to disappear from the borders (cell 
lumina) toward the middle of the wall so that a faint and thin 
middle lamella often persisted for forty-eight hours after the 
beginning of the ‘experiment. A similar melting away of the 
walls of the aleurone layer occurred more slowly. Newcombe 
also studied its action on the cell-walls of the cotyledon of 
Lupinus albus with like results, the middle lamella again proy- 
ing more resistant to this enzym than did the inner lamellae. 
We have repeated Newcombe’s work and found the results 
_as he describes. Trial was then made of taka-diastase in com- 
parison with the enzym from B. carotovorus on carrot-root 
walls. The results are shown in the accompanying figures 
8-10. 
THE CYTOLYTIC ACTION OF POLLEN-TUBES. 
Elfving (1879) and Strasburger (1884) have studied the 
development of pollen tubes and found that in general they 
burrow through the plane of the middle lamella, thus passing 
between the cells rather than through them. 
Miyoshi (1894) found the tubes capable in some cases at 
least of actually penetrating the walls. Both Miyoshi and 
Green (1894) conclude that the action of pollen tybes is such 
that the secretion of a cytolytic enzym must be inferred. Green 
made a series of careful experiments with pollen both before 
germination and during the process planned to demonstrate 
the presence of this and other enzyms which he judged to be 
present. He secured inulase and diastase but was unable to 
See abstract of Griiss article. Centralbl. f, Bakt. II 2: 585 (1896). 
