Page:Defensive Ferments of the Animal Organism (3rd edition).djvu/104

 cane sugar. It seems as if here also, after the introduction of a disharmonious kind of sugar, ferments appear which are not exclusively directed against the carbohydrate injected. Further, the ability of the organism to supply ferments seems to have limits, because, after an injection with raffinose, no definite reaction could be traced. Very likely this material is too markedly disharmonious with the cells of the body.

It is interesting to note that ferments contained in the plasma persist for a long time after the introduction of disharmonious substances, whether they be products of the albumen order or of the carbohydrates. The splitting activity of the plasma could still be clearly traced in individual cases up to three weeks after the injection. Important, too, is the fact that, after an intravenous injection of cane sugar, invertin could be demonstrated in the blood plasma within a quarter of an hour. When albuminous substances were introduced subcutaneously, then three to four days elapsed before the formation of the ferments attained its full value. After intravenous injections they manifest themselves within twenty-four hours. The fact that there are individual differences is also important. Moreover, the appearance of the defensive ferments is very much delayed after the introduction in large quantities of substances out of harmony with the blood.