410 M. R. SMIRNOW 



be contrary to any existing ideas in respect to the effects of ex- 

 haustion and would intimate that exhaustion can be inherited. 

 The following conclusions may be drawn from the foregoing 

 experiments with B. coli. 



1. Both glucose and phenol give rise to either partial or com- 

 plete inhibition of the cultural characteristics of some strains 

 of B. coli. Sodium chloride and sodium sulphate also display 

 inhibitory action but by no means as marked as either of the 

 above compounds. 



2. When complete, the change is more lasting, but there is 

 always present a strong tendency for the modified bacteria to 

 return to their former status of biological activities. 



3. Occasionally, complete reversion does not take place, in 

 which case the organism remains permanently devoid of certain 

 enzjrmes or of the power of fermenting one or more of the carbo- 

 hydrates. 



4. There is no well defined nor constant sequence of events 

 either during the process of modification or reversion, and no 

 relationship between the changes produced in the various en- 

 zymes, but, it may be stated, in a general way, that indol pro- 

 duction is the first to disappear, then, the fermentations of the 

 various carbohydrates, the characteristic growth on potato, 

 lab enzyme, and finally, acid production. 



In closing, the writer desires to take this opportunity of ex- 

 pressing his sincerest thanks to his students, Messrs. Bingaman, 

 Braude, Denehey, Nachamofsky, Rubinsky, Russo, and Miss 

 Wright, for their kind cooperation in the above work. 



BIBLIOGRAPHY 



BuRK 1908 Arch, fiir Hygiene, 65, 235. 



Herter 1910 Jour. Biol. Chem., 7, 59. 



Manfredi 1889 Ref. by Burton, Macfayden, Royal Soc, 46, 542. 



Massini 1907 Arch, fur Hygiene, 61, p. 250. 



Peckham 1897 Jour. Exp. Med., 2, 549. 



Penfold 1911 Brit. Med. Jour., 1911, Suppl. 2, 363. 



TwoRT 1907 Proc. Royal Soc, Lond., 79, Sec. B, 329. 



