450 ANNUAL REPOllT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1937 



distribution of these throughout the world as a basis for uniformity in 

 standards. In the biological division of the organization, inter- 

 national standards have been set up for digitalis and posterior pituitary 

 and also for the unit value for vitamins A and D, for vitamin B' and 

 for vitamin C and for the oestrus-producing or ovarian hormone. 



International standards have also been adopted for some of the 

 biologicals including diphtheria antitoxin and tetanus antitoxin and 

 also for arsphenamine and insidin. This international service is being 

 utilized by the pharmacopoeias of the world in the establishment of a 

 uniformity in potency for these very important medicines. 



PROPOSED SECRETARYSHIP ON PHARMACOPOEIAS FOR THE 

 LEAGUE OF NATIONS 



The latest move for international agreement on pharmacopoeial 

 standards is an outgrowth of the last Brusscl's Conference. This is 

 the proposal that there shall be established as a division of the Health 

 Organization of the League of Nations an office under the supervision 

 of an international secretary for pharmacopoeias under whose direction 

 there can be assembled for the benefit of all nations the scientific facts 

 which have a bearing upon the standardization of medicinal substances. 

 At the present time each national pharmacopoeial commission is com- 

 pelled to assemble this information independently and of necessity 

 with a varying degree of completeness. If this were done for all the 

 nations of the world through tliis international organization, such a 

 compilation of htcrature and expcrhncntal data could be issued to 

 the participating nations in the language which they could use, and 

 thus another workable phase of international cooperation would be 

 established, contributing to the general health of all nations. 



