Flavin - adenine Dinucleotide and Diaphorase in Resting and Germinated Spores , and Vegetative

The method described in the present work allows the purity of the solution under test for tocopherols to be assessed and also enables the separation of the commonly occurring a-, yand 8-tocopherols to be achieved. Applications of the method to the examination of several oils indicate the usefulness of the method. For example, the presence of 8tocopherol in soya-bean oil is readily ascertained, whereas its existence escaped detection by conventional methods for many years. In addition, the substance in cocksfoot grass which gives a colour with diazotized o-dianisidine is shown to be different from any of the known tocopherols in its behaviour on the chromatogram. Similarly, a non-tocopherol ferric-reducing substance which is not removed by the saponification, adsorption and crystallization processes is present in wheat-germ oil. Although the method will probably not be readily applicable to routine analysis, its value for reliably detecting the presence of naturally occurring tocopherols is apparent. Application of the method to the quantitative analysis of tocopherol mixtures is being undertaken and will be the subject ofa further communication.