The bactericidal and bacteriostatic actions of soaps have been recognized for many years. Detailed studies by Eggerth (1) on the germicidal action of soaps have shown the importance of such factors as length of hydrocarbon chain, chemical configuration, effect of hydrogen ion concentration, effect of serum, etc. Avery (2) demonstrated the selective germicidal action of soap on microorganisms, and recommended for the isolation of influenza bacilli a medium containing sodium oleate. He noted that "this medium prevents the growth of certain Gram-positive organisms, principally pneumococcus and streptococcus, while the growth of B. infuenzae is enhanced by the presence of this substance." The marked selectivity of soaps on bacteria has been studied further by Bayliss and Halvorson (3) and Bayliss (4). The work of Walker (5) indicates that although pneumococci and streptococci are unusually susceptible to certain soaps, staphylococci are very resistant. Because of the widespread occurrence of the staphylococcus on body surfaces, soaps have only a limited value as germicidal agents. Generally, they are employed when detergent, rather than germicidal action, is desired.In addition to their selectivity, which is a disadvantage unless one wishes to attack or differentiate specific microorganisms, soaps have certain other undesirable characteristics which limit their usefulness. Ordinary soaps have too alkaline a reaction for application on sensitive tissues. Moreover, soap is precipitated by hard water.Because of the tremendous demands of many industries for new and improved detergents, interface modifiers, wetting and emulsifying agents, and related compounds, and because of the competition for patents, at least a thousand individually different compounds with such properties have been synthesized in recent years.' * A preliminary account of these experiments was given by Miller and Baker in Science, 1940, 91, 624. ' Data concerning synthetic detergents and related compounds are scattered throughout the trade journals and patent literature. A discussion of the chemistry and applica-

Certain of the synthetic detergents exert a marked inhibitory effect on the metabolism (1) and viability (2) of bacteria. The germicidal action of these compounds and other biological effects have been studied by numerous investigators. 1

1. The bactericidal action of a number of anionic and cationic synthetic detergents on four Gram-positive and three Gram-negative bacteria has been investigated. 2. Cationic detergents, as a group, were found to exhibit marked bactericidal effects on Gram-positive microorganisms and somewhat less pronounced action on Gram-negative organisms. 3. The anionic detergents were germicidal only against the Gram-positive organisms, and they were considerably less effective than the cationic compounds. Of the anionic detergents, the most active one was an alkyl sulfate derived from a branched-chain, secondary alcohol. 4. Correlations between bactericidal action and inhibition of bacterial metabolism, and also between bactericidal action and chemical structure of the detergents are discussed.

IN the first paper of this series [Elliott and Schroeder, 1934] a study was made by manometric and analytical methods of the oxidative breakdown of lactic and pyruvic acids in rabbit kidney cortex. It appeared that lactate is first oxidised to pyruvate and that the main course of the removal of pyruvate follows a cycle of reactions similar to that put forward by Toenniessen and Brinkman [1930] for muscle tissue. This cycle involves the oxidation of 2 mols. of pyruvic acid, probably by way of an unknown intermediary, to 1 mol. of succinic acid; succinate is then oxidised to fumarate, which, after conversion into malate, is oxidised to oxaloacetate, and oxaloacetate is decarboxylated yielding 1 mol. of pyruvate. The series of reactions is illustrated by the following scheme: 2CH3.0CHOH.COO-4H (-2H +20 \ 2CH3. 0.COOH

No abstract