Enzymic nature of the carotene-destroying system of alfalfa.

Rapid destruction of carotene occurs in alfalfa during the field curing process. The loss under good curing conditions may be 45 to 80 per cent of the carotene originally present (14). Hauge and Aitkenhead (5) and Hauge (6) presented evidence which indicates the presence of a carotenedestroying enzyme system in alfalfa. The belief that the destruction of carotene during field curing may be largely enzymic in character is supported by later investigations (7-10). This view has been based chiefly on the observation that autoclaving or blanching of alfalfa prevents the destruction. The present investigation was conducted to determine the time-temperature relationships involved in the inactivation of the carotene-destroying system by heat, and to obtain additional data concerning the enzymic nature of the system.