ON THE CONTROL OF ROPE IN BREAD.* 



By E. J. COHN, 



First Lieutenant, Sanitary Corps, U. S. Army, 



S. B. WOLBACH, L. J. HENDERSON, 

 AND P. H. CATHCART, 



First Lieutenant, Sanitary Corps, U. S. Army. 



{From the Wolcott Gibbs Memorial Laboratory of Harvard University and the Patho- 

 logical Laboratory of the Peter Bent Brigham Hospital, Boston.) 



(Received for publication, August 27, 1918.) 



Rope is a condition of bacterial decomposition of bread which 

 leads to a peculiar slimy or ropy consistency of portions of the in- 

 terior of the loaf, produces an odor resembling that of ensilage, and 

 renders the loaf unacceptable. During summer months the loss of 

 bread through the development of rope may be very great, and in- 

 dividual bakeries may become so thoroughly infected that they can be 

 operated only with great difficulty. 



Several closely related organisms have been isolated from ropy 

 bread, some or all of which are undoubtedly the effective agents of the 

 decomposition.^"^ 



All varieties of bread appear to be liable to this decomposition within 

 24 hours or more after baking, but it has been stated that those con- 

 taining a considerable quantity of material other than white flour 

 are most often infected. For many years it has been customary to 

 add lactic acid, acetic acid, or some other acid substance to the dough 

 as a means of repressing the growth of the organism. Under favor- 

 able circumstances this method of treatment may be very satisfactory; 

 but it is always carried out by rule of thumb, and there is at present 



* Published with the permission of the Surgeon General. 

 ^ Lafar, F., Handbuch der technischen Mykologie, Jena, 1905-08, ii, 520. 

 ^ Fuhrmann, F., Vorlesungen iiber technische Mykologie, Jena, 1913, 257; 

 Centr. BakterioL, 2te Abt., 1906, xv, 385, 538. 



3 Beattie, J M., and Lewis, F. C, Lancet, 1917, ii, 211 



221 



