(1) Besides rubiginol, two substances of positive ferric chloride reaction were isolated from the culture liquid of Glu-conoacetobacter liquefaciens with a medium of 0.8% yeaet extract water containing 9.3% glucose and 2.5% calcium carbonate.
(2) One of them was found to be a new γ-pyrone derivative and was named rubiginic acid. It was isolated in the shape of prismatic needles and decomposes at 230°C. It gives a reddish violet color reaction with ferric chloride solution and reduces Fehling's and ammoniacal silver nitrate solution weakly, and decolorizes bromine water and potassium permanganate solution. Its molecular formula is. C₆H₄O₆ and one mole rubi-ginic acid decomposed to one mole rubiginol with the liberation of one mole carbon dioxide by heating at 230°C or boiling with conc. hydrochloric acid. The composition of rubiginic acid was concluded to be 3, 5-dihydroxy-1, 4-pyrone-2-carboxylic acid.
(3) Another substance of positive ferric chloride reaction was identified as comenic acid.
(4) The quantities of these substances formed were very little. From 140g of glucose, about 1.2g of rubliginol, 0.6g of rubiginic acid, and 0.5g of comenic acid were obtained.

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In order to make clear the so-called thermostable antithiamine factor of bracken, the properties of flavonoid pig-
ments therein have been studied. The results obtained are as follows:
1. From the ethyl acetate soluble fraction of alcoholic extract of bracken, astragalin (kaempferol-3-glucoside) and isoquercitrin (quercetin-3-glucoside) were isolated in the form of yellow and needle crystals respectively.
2. In addition, rutin and two unknown flavonoid pigments were detected by the paper chromatography.
3. Among these pigments, isoquercitrin and rutin have the marked thiamine-decomposing activity.
4. It is, therefore, presumed that a portion of the thermostable antithiamine factor of bracken is the flavonoid pigments such as isoquercitrin and rutin therein.

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A short survey of sinomenine investigation is given in the theoretical part, prin-cipally on the transformationn of sinomcnine of sinormenine derivatives, hitherto almost unnoticed in morphine derivatives, In experimental, the preparation of (+)-codeinone from sinomenine, reduction of I-bromocodeinone and similar compounds with SnCL₂+HCL₂, and the use of NaBH₄ on the reduction of the ketonic group in sinomenine derivatives are described.

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1. The three reagents (Folin's phenol reagent, fluorodinitrobenzene, and iodine) inactivate bacterial α-amylase slightly in an acid, but, remarkably in an alkaline solution.
2. Phenol reagent attacks the amylase protein with developing color, followed by a gradual loss of enzymic activity.
3. Iodine is consumed by the amylase increasing at higher pH values of solution and inactivates the amylase at greater rate than that of the reagent consumption.
4. Fluorodinitrobenzene seems to react in dual ways, one, changing pH-stability curve of the amylase without decreasing the enzymic activity and the other, inactivating the amylase activity itself.

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(1) The alkali- and thermo-stablesubstance indicating vitamin B₁₂ -activity in plant kingdom was confirmed to be a porphyrin-derivative containing Cobalt by paper partition chromatography and bioautography.
(2) Culture experiments on Euglena and Lactobacillus leichmannii with Go-porphyrin-derivative prepared from radish-leaves were always successful by vitamin B₁₂-free basal medium when sup-plemented with 1, 2-diamino-4, 5-dime-thyl-benzene or 5, 6-dimethyl-benzimidazole.
(3) From these results, the physiologi-cal role of Co-porphyrin-derivative as one of the active components effecting on the intermediary motabolism of vitamin B₁₂ seems to be established.

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We are studying exhaustively the steam distillable components “Essential Oils” of the formented Virginia tobacco leaves which consist of acids, bases, phenols, carbonyls and neutral compounds. At first we have tried the estimation of volatile organic acids contained in essential oils, and isolated and identified formic, acetic, isobutyric, lrans-crotonic, n-caproic, benzoic and phenylacetic acids by procedures using chromatography and infrared spectra. On the other hand, we also isolated a kind of fatty acid by the same procedure and estimated that it would be a pentoic acid. We could find no report which has proved the presence of trans-crotonic, phenylacetic and a pentoic acids in tobacco leaves.

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This work was undertaken to separate and identify the carbonyl compounds of the essential oil from Virginia tobacco leaves. In this paper, the carbonyl com-pounds were separated by the chromatographic adsorption on silicic acid and celite from petroleum heuzine-ether and-benzen and identified by melting point and infrared spectra. Acetaldehyde, isobutyraldehyde, benzaldehyde, furfural and 5-methylfurfural were identified from the mixture of 2, 4-dinitrophenylhydrazones of carbonyl com-pounds. Furfural formed two isomers of 2, 4-dinitrophenylhydrazones melting at 206°C and 227°C, respectively.

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An investigation was conducted on the phenolic compounds in the essential oil of Virginia tobacco leaves. Phenol, guaiacol, salicyl aldehyde, methylsalicylate, lauric acid, myristic ancid and palmitic acid were isolated amd identified. Unknown low boiling substance and some carbonyl compounds were isolated through this work, and were also investigated.

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1, The mold acylase of P. uinaceous was prepared by fractionation procedures with 0.6 saturation of ammonium sulfate, acetone precipitation, calcium gel adsorp-ton and following elution with phosphate buffer.
2. The enzymatic susceptibility of N-acylated amino acids and glycylpeptides towards the acylase were studied. The enzyme was more effective towards the acylderivatives of aromatic-substituted amino acids than towards those of
aliphatic amino acids. The enzyme possessed little or no action to hydrolyze the acylated D-amino acids.
3. DL-Phenylalanine and DL-methionine were resolved in relatively good yield by asymmetric hydrolysis of the acetylderi-vatives of these amino acids with the mold acylase.

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