Studies on Digestive Enzyme m Whale
Shichiro Akiya and Setsuzo Tejima
I. Introduction

In this country where medicinal digestive enzymes are lacking due toshortages of land animals, materials for such use must be sought elsewhere.
Luckily, Japanese i~ .surrounded on all sides by the sea where resoures formarine product abounds and to which we can turn for material. It isnatural, therefore, that we should turned to one of its biggest animal, thewhales, not only for madicinal material but also for the solvation of ourfoodstuff problem.
Although biological researches on whales have been made to a large
amount in the past and many bibliographical data are available, very few
references can be found of chemical studies of whales, either in fundamental chemistry or in its application. The author, therefore, undertook tomake some chemical experiment with whales with the object of obtaining
fundamental knowledge as basis for their utilization.
The first report,herewith, present some observations obtaind regarding digestive enzymes
contained in whales.
II. Digestive enzymes of· a whale (Balaenoptera borealis Lesson)
Researchs into pepsin ·like substance.
Stomachs of whales differ in structure according to species but they
are generally divided into 4 sections. For the sake of <;onvenience, theauthor and others named then as follows : lst stomach the one directly
connected with cesophagus. 2nd, 3rd and 4th stomachs-stomachs connectedto the lst in that order.
In order to determine how pepsin is distributed in each stomach,mucous membrane of the stomach was separated from its sinews and its
dried· powder was prepared.
1) No enzyme was found in the lst stomach, very little in the 2nd, andlarge amount were found in the 3rd and 4th stomachs.
2) Contrary to the existing idea of protein decomposing enzyme ofanimals, pepsin, which acts in acid medium, the substance found inwhales work best in neutral or alkaline media.

4Shichtro Akiya

3) Certain concentrated product can be obtained from the mucuous
membrane of the stomach by a simple process.
4) The substance is activated by common salt.
EXPERIMENTAL
1) Preparation of the material
Mucous membrane from each stomach of a whale (Baleanoptera borealis Lesson) dissected at Ayukawa in Miyagi prefecture, were soaked in
acetone and sent to Tokyo. The concentration of acetone was about 50%.
Time elapsed in transportation to Tokyo was about 10 days. The membrane was then cut into small pieces with scissors, put through a mincing
machine once and soaked in two to three volumes of acetone. This wasleft for one hour with occasional shaking and then filtered by suction. This
procedure was repeated 3 to 4 times. The membrane was finally shaken
with an equal mixture of acetone and ether for dehydration and degreasing,filtered, dried in the open and finally dried in vaccuum desiccator overcalcium chloride. The dried powder here obtaind was ground in mortar
and put through a sieve.
2) Determination of suitable pH for activitya) Determination of suitable pH by the liquefaction of gelatine.
3 g gelatine was added to 10 cc each of N/:;_o buffer solutions1l of different pH values, dissolved at 50°C and placed in a thermostat of 40°C. 0.5 gof the above dried stomach powder was added to each gelatine solution
and kept for 4 .hours in a thermostet at 40°C. The gelatine solutions weretaken out, cooled by water and their solidification observed.
The protein decomposing enzyme present in stomach is called pepsin
which, a~ is well known, is active in acid m~dium of pH 1 to 2. According
to bibliography, the most suitable pH values for pepsin to work on gelatine
is at pH 2-3. However, according to the results obtained in the above
experiment, it takes 48-72 hours for the powder of 3rd and 4th stomachs
to liquefy gelatine if the pH is kept at 2 to 3. On the other hand, if thepH is maintained at 5.0 to 6.2, powder from 3rd and 4th stomachs willliquefy gelatine completely in 4 hours. Li.:iuefaction occurs even at ph 8. 5.
1)

For buffer solution, Sorensen's hydrochloric acid sodium hydroxide, and Michaelis acetic
add-sodium acetate, were used. (Experimental Chemistry, II, 12, p. l:;.7)

Studies on Digestive Enzyme in Whale

5Table 1
2.4

I\I,.....\2.2
2.0t NN, ' ~j!

v ......, ',-': ,A

1.8'"·-II,.-T -~I

1.6
1.4
1.2,~)?'.

1.0Q.8r" "'"~~ .,,//z·z.v---y.F...v-\/·c, 0.2?

It"'~t 0.6~'0.4

stomack.

.......mstomacll.

123v4/'\ "-'/" I'\__ _,,,.6

18Ils9b) Determination of suitable pH value by titration
0.5 g Gelatine was added to 10 cc of hydrochloric acid or sodium hydroxide of various strengths, melted at 50°C and put into thermostat at 40°C.
0.1 g Dried stomach powder was added to each of these solutions, held for
4.5 hours at 40°C in the thermcstat. They were then taken out, 5 cc For- .
mol solution2 ) added and titrated with N/5 NaOH :;olution,. the end point
being coloration of the solution to red. Titration under identical conditions
were made with each of the solution of various acid or alkaline gelatine
without the addition of enzyme and the difference in the two values weretaken as the increase in acidity at each pH value. Following graph shows
the titration values at various pH values. No change in pH value wasobserved before and after the reaction. pH values were determined by thetest paper of Toyo Filter paper Co.
On the other hand, Bh.tret reaction was tested with the reaction mass
after reaction and obtained results coinciding well with the results of Formal
titration showing deep blue coloring on acidic side and light pink in neutral2)

1 cc 0.5% phenolphthalein (0.5 g phenolphthalein dissolved in 100 cc 50% alcohol) added
to 50 cc formalin (J. P.) and made into a pink solution with N/5 NaOH solution. (Biochem. Z. 7 (1907), 45 : Z. phys. C. 64 (1910), 120.

Shichlro Akiya

6and alkaline portions.
3) Concentration of enzyme
500 cc 0.2% hydrochloric acid solution was added to 50 g dried stomach
powder and left for 5 hours at room temperature with occasional stirring.
This was then filtered and a solution of (NH1}:S01 was added the filtrate to
50% saturation and the white precipitate that salted out was filtered anddried under reduced pressure over calcium chloride. This was taken as asample and enzymic action observed.
a) Pancreatin testing (as in J. P.). Method of testing by means ofmodification in clause (6) for casein solubility.
0.1 g Casein dried over sulphuric acid was taken in 50 cc measuring
bottle, 1 cc N/10 KOH added and dissolved, and water added to make thewhole volume 50 cc of this solution was taken, 4. 75 cc water added andheld in a thermostat at 40°C. 0.1 g purified enzyme powder mentioned
above was taken in a 500 cc measuring bottle, water added to make thewhole volume 500 cc with solvation of the enzyme. 0.25 cc of this enzyme
solution. was added to the casein solution and held for 1 hour in a thermostat at 40°C. This was then taken out and 3 drops of acetic ·acid alcoholsolution (1 cc acetic acid, 9 cc water and 10 cc alcohol) was added but noopalescence or precipitation occured. This shows that at 40°C and at pH7, the enzyme digests 200 times its quantity of casein in 1 hour.
b) Determination of suitable pH value ·50 mg of the above mentioned salted-out enzyme was taken in a 25 cc
measuring bottle and dissolved in 50% glycerine. 1 cc of this solution was
Table 2taken as the enzyme solution.
z 2.0-....
For a base material, 10 cc 6%tnz
gelatine solution was made into0::c~ 1.5
a 14 cc solutions with the addi'tion of a suitable amount of N/5
NaOH or N/5 HCl with further
1.0
1addition of water. The enzyme
solution was added to each of the0.5
acid or alkaline test solutions,i-~reacted for 1 hou'r at 40°C andtitreted with Formol solution. As
Ol.2345678l)l0
PH a control, a solution with 1 cc of"vvv

I \Studieson Digetive Enzvme in Whale7

distilled water instead of enzyme solution was used and the difference intitration value was taken as the amount dissolved at each pH value.
Determination of pH was mas made as in the above (2) b). Results areshown in the following graph.
4) Activation by common salt
0.5 g Gelatine (I) was dissolved in 10 cc distilled water (II) and 10 cc
0.3% NaCl; 0.1 g dried powder of 3rd (or 4th) stomach added and reacted
for 4 hours at 40°C. It was found that the Formal titration value of (II)was 30% larger than of (I). In this case, the titration values of the basic
material a.re the same for both (I) and (II) when no addition of enzyme ismade. It is assumed that enzymic action is somewhat activated by commom salt.
(Pharmaceutical department, the Faculty of Medicine, University of Tokyoand Whales Research Institute.)