THE BACTERICIDAL ACTION OF SYNTHETIC DETERGENTS

1. The bactericidal action of a number of anionic and cationic synthetic detergents on four Gram-positive and three Gram-negative bacteria has been investigated. 2. Cationic detergents, as a group, were found to exhibit marked bactericidal effects on Gram-positive microorganisms and somewhat less pronounced action on Gram-negative organisms. 3. The anionic detergents were germicidal only against the Gram-positive organisms, and they were considerably less effective than the cationic compounds. Of the anionic detergents, the most active one was an alkyl sulfate derived from a branched-chain, secondary alcohol. 4. Correlations between bactericidal action and inhibition of bacterial metabolism, and also between bactericidal action and chemical structure of the detergents are discussed.