470 MEDICAL MYCOLOGY 



sulphate and reoxidize to red in contact witli air. These are probably 

 anthracene pigments related to those of the Caloplacaceae and Teloschistaceae 

 among the lichens. 



The viability of Ectotrichophyton mentagrophytes in straw, wood, horn, 

 and similar substances was studied by Brocq-Rousseu, Urbain & Barotte 

 (1928), and by Urbain (1929). In such situations, the organism retained its 

 virulence for at least nine months and in pure culture, at least 2 years. 



Kadisch (1929) made a similar study with Achorion gypseum, Epider- 

 mophyton inter digit ale, E. floccosum, EctotricJiophyton granulosum, and E. 

 mentagrophytes var. radiolatum, Trichophyton flavum, and Achorion muris on 

 silk, wool, leather, and feathers and found that the organism survived on 

 these substances ; hence clothing of these materials might be capable of trans- 

 mitting the disease. That these organisms may not only survive but also 

 multiply rapidly on these materials is probable from the amusing case, reported 

 by White, of a wealthy woman of Boston who felt that she could not intrust 

 her silk underwear to anyone but her special laundress. On a pleasure trip 

 to Bermuda she accumulated her laundry for several weeks and on her return 

 home had it done in proper style by her own laundress. The next week she 

 appeared with a generalized infection of Epidermophyton covering practically 

 the whole area which had come into contact with her underwear. Apparently 

 her quiescent Epidermophyton interdigitale had developed from scales in her 

 silk stockings and spread to all the rest of the underwear during the warm, 

 moist conditions of the voyage. It would seem that a return to cotton under- 

 wear which can be easily sterilized would decrease the spread of these infec- 

 tions, although Kadisch (1931) reports that silks may be disinfected from 

 Achorion gypseum by exposure to thymol vapor for one week or to 70% alcohol 

 without injury to the fiber. Bonar & Dreyer (1932) continued this line of 

 investigation using Epidermophyton interdigitale, E. floccosum, Microspornm 

 canis (M. lanosmn), and Megatrichophyton roseum (T. rosaceum) . They found 

 that the organism does not grow on sound, clean wood, but tliat it grows readily 

 on floor material that is covered by a coating of slime or algal growth. Zinc 

 chloride, sodium h.Tpochlorite, and copper sulphate in 1% solutions were found 

 insufficient to sterilize completely floor materials coated with slime on which 

 the fungus was growing. Exposures up to an hour in sodium hypochlorite 

 solution were necessary to disinfect scales, although 10 minutes showed a 

 decrease in the number of positive cultures from treated scales. Temperature 

 studies showed complete disinfection of clothing materials in 10 minutes at 

 75° C. Correlating with standard laundry practice shoM'^s that white cotton 

 fabrics will be returned from the laundry free of dermatophytes, while sterili- 

 zation of woolens or silks is doubtful. The standard dry cleaning solvents 

 have a negligible killing action in exposures of one to two hours. Mendel 

 (1932) has proposed the disinfection of shoes and other leather goods by 

 formaldehyde. Lomholt (1932) suggests rinsing woolen socks in denatured 

 alcohol, then wrapping them in brown paper for two days before rinsing in 

 water and drying. 



