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SUMMARY A chloroform-soluble, extracellular product of Pseudomonas aeruginosa was obtained from sloppy-agar cultures. Pyrogallol 1-monomethyl ether, 1-methoxyphenazine, 1-hydroxyphenazine and pyocyanin were chemically synthesised and also tested for an inhibitory effect on mitochondrial respiration. It was found that the Ps. aeruginosa substance and 1-hydroxyphenazine inhibited the uptake of oxygen by mouse liver mitochondria utilising sodium succinate. In a Ps. aeruginosa infection this substance would be released into the bloodstream, accumulate in the liver and cause cytolysis, thus contributing to the complex mechanism of Ps. aeruginosa pathogenicity.
Armstrong et al. (Sat,) studied this question.