642  United  States  Pharmacopoeial  Revision.  { '^^eptember^Y92o' 
Staining  Solutions. — If  retained,  mention  should  be  made  of 
Pappenheim's  Solution  and  Aniline  Gentian  Violet,  giving  the  in- 
gredients and  methods  of  preparation. 
Blood  Reaction,  page  6ig. — The  benzidene  test  should  be  in- 
troduced. 
Urea  Estimation,  page  620. — ^The  Urease  Method  for  determining 
urea  should  be  introduced. 
Benedict's  Solution,  page  621. — These  solutions  for  qualitative 
and  quantitative  determination  of  glucose  should  be  introduced. 
Mention  should  be  made  of  the  fermentation  method  for  the  de- 
termination of  glucose  in  urine. 
Gastric  Contents,  page  621. — Sahli's  reagent  for  the  determination 
of  free  acidity  should  be  mentioned,  as  well  as  Uffelman's  reagent  for 
lactic  acid. 
Diagnostical  Reagents. — If  the  Revision  Committee  decides  to 
retain  the  Diagnostic  Reagents  in  the  U.  S.  P.,  many  other  reagents 
which  are  at  present  used  in  the  Newer  Blood  Chemical  Tests  should 
be  introduced.  In  making  up  such  tests,  there  are  also  standard 
solutions  for  colorimetric  comparisons,  in  addition  to  reagents, 
which  it  is  desirable  and  essential  to  include  in  the  Pharmacopoeia. 
PHARMACODYNAMICS. 
The  incorporation  of  the  chapter  on  "Biologic  Assays"  in  the 
U.  S.  P.  IX  is  an  epoch  in  the  history  of  standardization  and  this 
method  of  assay  should,  be  applied  to  a  greater  number  of  drugs 
which  cannot  be  satisfactorily  assayed  by  chemical  means. 
We  recommend  that  more  of  the  methods  be  .made  compulsory 
instead  of  optional  and  that  biologic  assays  be  included  for  Ergot, 
Gelsemium,  Lobelia,  and  Veratrum  Viride.  We  would,  however, 
recommend  that  these  tests  be  referred  to  as  "Pharmacodynamic 
Assays"  instead  of  "Biologic  Assay b",  and  thus  make  the  Pharma- 
copoeia conform  with  the  definitions  of  the  Pharmaceutical  Syllabus. 
As  a  result  of  personal  experience  and  the  number  of  papers 
which  have  been  published  criticising  the  present  U.  S.  P.  methods, 
we  are  of  the  opinion  that  the  "Biologic  Assay  Methods"  of  the 
U,  S.  P.  IX  are  unsatisfactory,  due  to  the  fact  that  in  many  cases 
they  lack  the  details  which  workers  in  the  practical  laboratory  have 
found  essential  in  order  to  obtain  accurate  results.  In  other  words, 
the  methods  are  in  many  instances  not  as  accurate  and  up-to-date 
as  the  methods  in  common  use  at  the  present  time  in  commercial 
