NATURE 



[January 17, 19 18 



made to discover some chemical agent which shall 

 be able to kill these organisms, without injury to 

 the tissues in which they flourish ; but with little 

 success. It is somewhat remarkable that most 

 success has been obtained, not, as might have been 

 expected, with the destruction of plant organisms, 

 but with certain protozoa which have shown I 

 themselves to be readily susceptible to the toxic 

 action of metals in organic combination. The 

 present report gives an account of some steps 

 towards the solution of the general problem. The 

 hypochlorites introduced by Dakin have been 

 found, in the hands of Lorrain Smith and Ritchie, 

 to be comparatively non-toxic when injected into 

 the veins in the form of " Eusol," while having an 

 unmistakably beneficial effect in certain infec- 

 tions. But, as Dakin has shown, hypochlorites 

 enter at once into combination with the proteins 

 of the blood and cannot be supposed to exert a direct 

 bactericidal action therein. The effect is apparently 

 produced by some change in the blood itself, and 

 it is interesting to note that Dale and Dobell have 

 been led to the conclusion that the action of alka- 

 loids on the amoeba of dysentery outside the body 

 is not an index to their therapeutic efficiency, and 

 that their influence on the tissues of the patient is 

 of equal importance. On the other hand, the 

 work of Dr. Carl Browning and his colleagues has 

 brought forward a compound, related to the 

 acidine series of dyes, which is apparently much 

 more toxic to bacteria than it is to animal cells. 

 Or account of its colour, this antiseptic was ori- 

 ginally called "flavine." It kills bacteria in con- 

 centrations in which it has but little efl'ect on the 

 activity of leucocytes, and is non-toxic in intra- 

 venous injection. Since the report was issued 

 Dr. Browning has described experiments in which 

 rabbits received intravenous injections of flavine 

 without harm, but the serum of which was found j 

 in vitro to destroy bacteria. Opinions are, as yet, 

 divided as to the value of flavine as a treatment for 

 wounds. Some surgeons find that it prevents the 

 normal growth of new tissue ; but it is possible 

 that the correct conditions have not yet been dis- 

 covered. 



In connection with the practical use of these 

 various antiseptics, the law of distribution between 

 phases, according to solubility, receives applica- 

 tion in the value of the solutions of dichloroamine, 

 acriflavine, and iodoform in fatty solvents, such as 

 eucalyptol, paraffin, and soap. 



The physiological importance of the presence in 

 the organism of minute quantities of certain 

 chemical substances, the constitution of which is, 

 for the most part, unknown, becomes every day 

 more evident. In two respects the report adds 

 further valuable information. The ' ' accessory 

 factors " in food, without which growth is impos- 

 sible and various diseases develop, appear to be of 

 some variety and number. The growth factor in 

 milk is shown by Winfield, in the laboratory of 

 Hopkins, to be preserved in the drying process, a 

 fact of practical bearing at the present time. The 

 necessity of such factors for the growth of uni- 

 cellular organisms themselves has been known for 

 some time, but Miss Jordan Lloyd adds an impor- 



NO. 2516, VOL. 100] 



tant further contribution in her investigation of 

 culture media for bacteria. She is of opinion that 

 these growth factors act as catalysts. The chemi- 

 cal reactions, or some of them, necessary for 

 growth proceed naturally at too slow a rate to be 

 effective; but they can be accelerated by the pres- 

 ence of the factors in question. This hypothesis is 

 in agreement with the fact that, although the sub- 

 stances are present in very small amount, they do 

 not disappear from the organism for some days 

 after the food has been deprived of them. They 

 appear to exercise their function without them- 

 selves suffering chemical change. The second im- 

 portant addition to our knowledge concerns the 

 internal secretion of the parathyroid glands. Noel 

 Paton and his coadjutors show that the muscular 

 tremors, which make their appearance when these 

 glands are removed, are due to a disturbance of 

 the metabolism of guanidine, which becomes pres- 

 ent in excess under these conditions. 



A brief reference should be made to the results 

 of the laborious statistical work undertaken by the 

 Committee, especially to that which shows the 

 occurrence of two distinct types of micro-organ- 

 isms producing phthisis. The comparative inci- 

 dence of kidney disease in the ordinary population 

 and in the men in the trenches also deserves men- 

 tion. The value of the statistical method, under 

 appropriate control, is well demonstrated. 



A final reference may be made to the latest de- 

 velopment of the Committee's work. (see p. 78 of 

 the report). The present writer, when visiting 

 some casualty clearing stations in France and 

 Flanders in August last, found so great a diverg- 

 ence of views as to the cause and treatment of 

 the "shock " following injury that, on his return, 

 a special investigation committee was formed, con- 

 sisting of surgeons at the front and laboratory 

 workers in England.' Results of much physiologi- 

 cal importance may be expected, especially as to 

 the cause of the low blood-pressure and its indirect 

 effects. Several memoranda are already in course 

 of publication. W. M. Bayliss. 



SCIENCE AND INDUSTRY IN AUSTRALIA. 



THE Executive Committee of the Advisory 

 Council of Science and Industry for the 

 Commonwealth of Australia has recently pub- 

 lished a report covering the period from its 

 appointment to June 30, 1917.^ The Advisory 

 Council was originally appointed on March 16, 

 1916, and was intended to be a temporary body 

 designed to prepare the way for a permanent 

 Institute of Science and Industry, and to exer- 

 cise in a preliminary way the functions that will 

 in future belong to the institute. 



The council as a whole has met only twice, 

 but a vast amount of work has been done through 

 committees. The Executive Committee has pre- 

 viously made two reports, but the document 

 recently issued is a survey of the work done, and 

 represents to a large extent the completion of the 

 task of the temporary organisation in preparing 

 the way for the permanent institute. 



1 C. 7963. (Melbourne : Government Printer.) 



