dichlorophenoxyacetic acid glucosides have been obtained (Thomas and 
Loughman, 1964a). 
Degradation of compounds related to 2,4-D has also been studied 
(Wain, 1954). MCPB gave rise to MCPA when fed to dairy cows (Bache et al., 
1964a, b, c). In laboratory tests, bluegill (Lepomis gibbosus) converted 4- 
(2,4-DB) to 2,4-D (Gutenmann and Lisk, 1965). When 4-(2,4-DB) was fed 
to dairy cows, however, 2,4-D was not found, although it does not decompose 
in the rumen. The major portion of 4-(2,4-DB), therefore, is presumably 
degraded by a mechanism other than 8-oxidation (Lisk et al., 1963; 
Gutenmann and Lisk, 1963c). In silage (Linscott and Hagin, 1963; Linscott, 
1964), timothy, birdsfoot trefoil, or pea plants (Fertig et al., 1964), 
decomposition of 4-(2,4-DB) has been shown to proceed by 8-oxidation. It 
also has been shown that related compounds could be degraded by a- and 
8-oxidation in plants (Levey and Lewis, 1947; Fawcett et al., 1954, 1958; 
Moore and Rogers, 1960). y-(2,4,5-Trichlorophenoxy)butyric acid was 
metabolized to its acetic acid derivative in wheat but not in pea stems 
(Balayannis et al., 1965b). P 
The biotransformation of 2,4-dichlorophenoxyalkanoic acids and related 
compounds by soil microflora has been extensively studied (Audus, 1949, 
1950, 1951, 1952b; Audus and Symonds, 1955; Newman and Thomas, 1950; 
Steenson and Walker, 1956; Byrde et al., 1956, 1957, 1958; Jensen and 
Peterson, 1952; Evans and Smith, 1954, 1957; Fawcett et al., 1954; Webley 
et al., 1955, 1957, 1958; Bell, 1957; Henderson, 1957; Thomas and Loughman, 
1957, 1963; Faulkner and Woodcock, 1961; Thiegs, 1962; Clifford and Woodcock, 
1964). Phenoxyalkanoic acids with an even number of carbons in the fatty 
63 
