CHEMICAL CRITERIA OF ANAEROBIOSIS 39 



Various methods of anaerobiosis are viewed critically iii the 

 light of experimental tests with carefully balanced solutions of 

 alkaline glucose methylene blue in comparison with cultural 

 tests with B. Welchii, B. tetani, B. hoiulinus, and other obligate 

 anaerobes. 



A detailed study of the decolorization of methylene blue by 

 plant and animal tissues is described, showing the important 

 role of adsorption as a means of decolorization by these and 

 other porous substances. The extraction from plant and animal 

 tissues of reducing substances for methylene blue, active in 

 alkaline solution, is described. 



The efficacy of deep culture methods for anaerobes is shown 

 while the inefficacy of insoluble hquid (i.e., oil) seals is contrasted 

 with the reliability of semi-solid waxes and greases, and that of 

 mechanical seals. 



The short-comings of certain methods of surface cultm-e of 

 obhgative anaerobes are exposed and the value of a modification 

 of Wright's method upheld by these studies. 



Finally, the desirability is indicated of determining exactly 

 to what degree of oxygen tension reduction the decolorization 

 of methylene blue corresponds, and whether decolorization occurs 

 at a definite hydrogen ion concentration irrespective of the sugar 

 content of the solution. 



REFERENCES 



Bekner 1904 On a vial for the culture of anaerobic bacteria on plates. 



Centralbl. f. Bakteriol., 1 Abt. Orig., 37, 478. 

 Bernthsen 1883 Ueber das Methylenblau. Berichte d. deutschen Chem 



Gesellsch., 16, 1025. 



1883 Zur Kenntniss des Methylenblau u. vem^andter Farbstoffe. 

 Ibid., 16, 2896. 



1884 Ibid., 17, 611. 



1885 Studien in der Methylenblaugruppe. Liebig's Annalen der 

 Chemie, 230, 73, 137. 



Brown 1920 Cultural differentiation of beta hemolytic streptococci of human 



and bovine origin. Jour. Exp. Med., 31, 35. 

 BucHNER, E. 1885 Ueber den Einfiuss des Sauerstoffs auf Gahrungen. Ztschr. 



f. Phys. Chem., 9, 380. 

 BucHNEK, H, 1884 Eine neue Methode zur Kultur anaerober Mikroorganismen. 



Centr. f. Bakt., 1 Abt. Orig. 4, 149. 



