Findlay (26) has reported a study of the effect of deprivation of pigeons of the anti-beri-beri substance, water-soluble B, on the content of glyoxalase in their tissues. Glyoxalase is an enzyme which plays an important role in the metabolism of carbohydrate. It has the power to transform "glyoxals" into lactic acid. The "glyoxal" which serves in the animal body as the intermediate substance between glucose and lactic acid is known as pyruvic aldehyd. Glyoxalase is more abundant in the liver than in other tissues.

Findlay observed that the amount of glyoxalase in the livers was reduced to about half the normal amount when the birds were caused to develop beri-beri through restricting them to a diet of polished rice. On inducing a "cure" by the administration of the anti-neuritic substance the amount of glyoxalase rose rapidly to two-thirds of the normal amount (26).