Buchner brothers

Despite the possible practical significance of such procedures, they bring flavor enzymology to about the level to which the Buchner brothers brought fermentation in 1897. The reactions involved are not necessarily understood and the enzymes are defined only in terms of the flavors produced. Development of a cell-free preparation which carries out an organoleptically desirable change may be necessary to understand the reactions involved, but it is only a first step. Better control of flavor development requires definition of the products and substrates of the enzymes involved as well as purification of the enzymes. Without this knowledge it is diflBcult to define the enzymes let alone discuss them at a sophisticated level. 

Therefore, it s somewhat fitting that biochemistry began as a science 100 years ago with the demonstration by the Buchner brothers that sucrose could be fermented into ethanol using a yeast-cell extract. The study of glycolysis led to many of the concepts discussed in this book, including the roles of ATP, cofactors, and enzyme regulation. 

Eduard Buchner s elder brother Hans was a rather impressive figure. Carl Harries, who was one of the guests at Eduard s wedding where he met Hans, described him as a very tall and fine-looking man with grave but friendly eyes, eminently eloquent and in every way very different from Eduard. Apparently, compared to his elder brother, Eduard seemed much more unassuming, not to say insignificant. It is easy to understand that he looked up to his brother and that Hans had a considerable influence over him. 

Eduard Buchner made substantial contributions not only to organic chemistry but also to biochemistry. About half of his 120 scientific publications are dedicated to his research in biochemistry, and in fact, he is regarded as one of the fathers of modem biochemistry. In 1897, Eduard Buchner (together with his brother Hans Buchner) discovered quite by accident that fermentation could occur outside living cells, thus disproving a long held belief, asserted by Louis Pasteur in 1860, that fermentation is inextricably tied to living cells. His chance discovery, which opened the door to modem biochemistry, led him to the award of the Nobel Prize for chemistry in 1907. 

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