Evening star., 1940-12-27
Potency Of Antiseptic
For Burns Increased
By Yeast Substance
Scientific Session Told
Stronger Solutions Fail
To Harm Normal Cells
BY THOM..S r. HENRY,
Star Staff Co. espondent.

PHILADELPHIA, Dec. 27.-Dis-
covery of a toxin -inhibiting sub
stance in yeast which, when mixed
with powerful antiseptics, prevents
them from injuring delicate normal
tissues while retaining their full
potency against germs was an
nounced at the opening sessions OF
the American Association for the
Advancement of Science here yes
terday by the Institutum Divi
Thomae of Cincinnati.
The new substance, which has
been obtained in presumably pure
, crystalline form, promises to be one
of the most notable contributions
of the decade to military medicine
Already tests made at the Mercy
Hospital, Chicago, it was announced,
have cut in half the time required
for healing serious burns and have
greatly reduced the disfiguring scar
tissue.
The work was carried out under
the direction of DR.. George Speri-
Spertl, director of the institute, and
by DR.. Elton S. Cook, who presented
an exhibit here yesterday illustrat-
Ing the action of the yeast SUBJ
stance. Since the substance is espe-
cially applicable to burns, which
are among the most serious and fire.
quent of war injuries, the expert
mental work has been haStened.
There are a great number OF
familiar antisepticS, DR.. Cook ex-
planned, which when used in suffl-
cient concentrations, will kill any
of the organisms which ordinarily
infect wounds and burns. Among
these Is ordinary tincture of iodine
Another, used in these experiments
is phenyl mercury nitrate. All OF
them, however, are highly cauStic
and may kill normal cells even more
easily than they kill germs This
prevents wounds from healing ano
the dead cells form a toxin which
gets into the blood stream and in
3 serious cases may prove fatal.
Stimulates Respiration.
The new yeast constituent, one
of several isolated by the Institutum
Divi Thomae, normally acts as q
stimulant to cell respiration. This
is essential to the life of these basic
units of the body. At least one OF
the ways in which ordinary antiSep-
tics kill cells is by preventing this
respiration. There is possibility
DR.. Cook said, that the 'biodyne,
as the new material Is known, may
prevent the poisonous action oi
antiseptics in several other ways.
Most of the laboratory tests, DR.
Cook said, have been carried Out
& with slime moulds, single-cellec
. organisms related to yeast and alst
to many of the disease producing
organisms. From these samt
moulds, English workers have re
Gently extracted a material known
as pencillin, which preliminary test
have shown in an antiseptic with s
powerful action against germs ant
very little poisonous effect on nor
NAL cells. This has been hailed a.
one of England's major medica
discoveries during the war periot
and pencillin has been used widel,
in the treatment of air raid casual
ties. The findings of DR.. Speri
Sperti and his associates may max,
1t already out of date.
Another research project will
"biodynes" at the institute, it wa
announced, deals with the propertie
of cocaine, the powerful habit
forming local anaesthetic Of whicl
war shortage has been predicted
One form of cocaine has been pro
duced, DR.. Cook explained, whicl
drug but which also has less pain
killing effect. BY following out tn
same lines, he believes, it may b
possible to preserve the lack Of tox
icity and at the same time rails
the anaesthetic properties.
A temperature of nearly 27,000, 90
degrees Centigrade in the centrs
core of the sun and a weight of ap
proximately ITO grams per cub
centimeter, both far higher tina
had previously been calculated, wa
announced before the America
Physical Society by Prof. H.
Bethe of Cornell University.
w. p. A. Helped Project.
The calculations involved were S
laborious and expensive that the
could not have been carried OF
were 1t not for a w. P. A. projet
for unemployed mathematicians i
New York City, who have devote
several months to them.
Two high-speed rotors develope
at the University of Virginia, or
highly important scientific to-
for the measurement of molecule
weights and the other capable {
more than 100000 revolutions a SCI
ond, were described to the physics
society.
How small steel balls have bee
made to spin at superspeeds whi
suspended magneticaly in vacuum
was reported by Lloyd E. MacHat
tie. a graduate student. He use
balls three thirty-seconds of a
inch in diameter, such as are USE
in ball bearings. When in vacuum
and rotated by an outside electro
magnetic force, the drag from fri
ton was almost completely elm
mated and speeds of rotation ol
tanned in which the outside of Il
ball was moving about two al
a half times the speed of sound.
Small steel rods, three-sixteentl
of an inch in diameter, we're be-
double by the great centrifug
force when spun at $4,000 revolt
tions second. J