IN order to make a jucdicious clhoice of the antiseptic most likely to give useful results in the treatment of infected wounds m:lany different factors lhave to be considered in addition to germicidal activity, including tlle irritating properties of the substances, their toxicity, solubility, ability to penetrate tissues and to be absorbed, and their chemical reactions with proteins and other tissue constituents.The k.illing of bacteria by ordinary antiseptic substances is esseiltially a clhemiical reaction between the antiseptic on the onle lhand and the proteins and other cell constitu'ents of the micro-organism on tlle other. The destruction by auitiseptics of bacteria suspended in water is -easily effected, because no proteins are present in the mixture otlher than those dle-ived from the micro-organism. Thle (lestruction bv antiseptics of bacteria mixed witlh blood seruin, pus, and otlher exudate is much more difficult because the antiseptic acts nlot only on the micro-organisms but onl other protein substances as well. Tlherefore, in judging of the antiseptic action of a substance suitable for the treatment of woundls, it is essential that its germicidal action be tested againist micro-organismiis mixed witlh blood serum or simiiilar suibstances, and not simplly tested against bacteria suspended in water.The germicidal activity of all known antiseptics is greatly ieduced by tlle presence of blood serum or simnilar substances, and ia som-ne cases this reduction is so great tlhat tlle compound loses all practical anticeptic value. IThle following table conitains results wlhiclh illustrate this enorinous eduction in germnicidal action by blood serum in the case of several common anitiseptics. I am greatly indebted to my colleague, Dr. Maurice Daufresne, for all the bacteriological results referred to in this communication.

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Reference has already been made [1916, 1, 2] to the oxidation of certain amino-acids with hypochlorite and with chloramine-T. The latter term is the abbreviated name for sodio-p-toluenesulphochloroamine, a substance which appears to constitute a useful addition to the small-class of neutral oxidising agents. These experiments seemed worth extending, partly because interesting products of oxidation were likely to be met with and also as preliminary to a study of the mode of antiseptic action of substances of the chloroamine group. In the case of glycine, alanine, leucine, and a-aminophenylacetic acid it was found that the first product of oxidation, using one molecule of oxidising agent, was an aldehyde, as is usually the case with hypochlorite oxidation, as shown by Langheld. On using two molecules of chloramine-T for the oxidations, nitriles were formed, sometimes in good yield. With histidine, no aldehyde1 could be isolated, but an excellent yield of cyanomethylglyoxaline was obtained.The present communication deals especially with the oxidation of the neutral salts of glutamic, aspartic, and methylaspartic acids and asparagine, valine and isoleucine. Glutamic actd may be considered first since the reaction is less complex than with the other substances.On acting on a dilute aqueous solution of the mono-sodium salt of glutamic acid (1 mol.) with chloramine-T (1 mol.) an excellent yield of the semi-aldehyde of succinic acid (,-aldehydopropionic acid) is obtained. It is most readily separated and identified by means of its nitrophenylhydrazone, but the substance itself may be isolated and distilled although with considerable 1 It would appear that Langheld's observations on the formation of iminazoleacetaldehyde by the action of hypochlorite on histidine require confirmation.Bioch. xi 6

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