Evening star., 1943-08-01

III nISSuOnS
| have not yet determined the exact
structure of the substance, which
appears first as tiny golden droplets
on the mold and is ultimately pro-
cessed into a yellow powder.
Attempts to synthesize is are con-
tinuing, but DR.. A. N. Richards,
chairman of the Committee on
Medical Research for the Office of
Scientific Research and Develop
ment, says:
"An early synthetis Of penicillin is
not to be expected And 1t Is con-
ceivable that even If synthesis is &C.
complished, production of the drug
by that means might be even more
costly than the natural method Of
obtaining 1t from mold"
Not Indestructible.
Here's an idea Of the production
problems involved:
To prepare single gram Zone
thirtieth Of an ounce of penicilliIl-
an amount sufficient for about 10
standard doses-requires careful
processing Of approximately 20
quarts Of culture fluid and mold over
period Of IL days. Even then, con-
ditions must be perfect. "
1t is an ironic paradox that peri-
ciliin, powerful as 1t Is in checking
the growth of many bacteria, can
itself be destroyed by nicro-organ-
isms from the air while it iss being
processed. ..x s-rk ..--
Hundreds OF gallons of working
materials have had to be dumped
down the drain because Of impuri-
ties encountered" declares DR..
Richards Its been a heartbreak-
ing job for the manufacturers, and
they should receive great credit for
sticking to it."
Not long ago House 'Appropria-
tions Committee was told that TO-
900 900 units Of penicillin had been
sent to our armed forces in England
and similar quantity to the troops
In North Africa.
Cases Vary In Needs.
But unit is a quantity sufficient
only to cover the head of pin. How
long 100000 units would last
would depend on the severity of the
cases treated. One patient suffering
from a blood stream infection by
starhylococci might be cured by a
half million units. On the other
hand, some of the battle wounded
might require as much as four mil
lion units.
A recent report to the medical
profession on penicillin's progress,
released through the Journal of the
American Medical Association, de-
clared the results so far are uphold
ing the early promise" offered by
the British investigators, and that
there Is good reason for the belief
that 1t is far superior to any of the
sulfonamides" in the treatment of
certain infections.
The report listed infection by the
staphylococcus germs which cause
gangrene in wounds and inf1ame the
bone and marrow. It listed infected
burns; empyema or the accumula-
ton of pus in cavities of the body.
cellulitis, which is an Inflammation
of cellular tissue, and carbuncles of
the lip and face 1t said penicillin
was effective against pneumonia and
gonorrheal organisms that had re-
sisted the sulfonamides.
Investigators here and in England
have found the drug effective in
treating mastoids, meningitis, Ger
tain streptoccal infections and brain
wounds.
No Bad Reactions.
So far, it has not caused i'll re-
actions in human cases when purely
prepared-compared with the sulfo-
namides, which sometimes cause re-
actions. And it has a further ad-
vantage over the sulfa drugs in that
it is not hampered by large num-
bers of microbes or pus fluids.
Like the sulfa drugs, penicillin
does not kill bacteria. 1t checks
their further reproduction, giving
the normal protective watchdogs of
the human system-the white blood
corpuscles-a chance to destroy ex-
listing bacteria. The drug is so po-
tent that it checks the growth of
bacteria even when diluted up to
100000 times.
The drug was discovered in Eng
land in 1929 by Prof. Alexander
Fleming, University of London bac-
teriologist Prof. Fleming was con-
Quoting routine tests on culture of
staphylococci spread on glass plate
when he noticed small particle of
mold had formed on the plate.
Around the mold was a clear
space-free of the germs that COW
cred the rest of the glass. Prof.
Fleming investigated and found that
substance excreted by the mold
inhibited the growth of the germs.
He named the substance penicillin--
after the mold, pendulum notatum,
from which is was derived.
Tried First in 1941.
In 1910 other British investigators,
led by Prof. H. w. Florey and DR..
E. Chain of the University of Ok
ford, succeeded In preparing a puri-
t fed form of the drug, and the fol-
lowing year administered It for the