THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE LIPOID AFFINITY AND THE INSECTICIDAL ACTION OF 1,1-bis (p-FLUOROPHENYL) 2,2,2-TRICHLOROETHANE AND RELATED SUBSTANCES

¹ From the Department of Biochemistry, College of Agriculture, University of Wisconsin, Madison

The compound 1,1-bis(p-fluorophenyl) 2,2,2-trichloroethane which has insecticidal activity very near that of DDT has been shown to accumulate in the perirenal fat of rats to which it was fed. The compound 1,1-bis(p-chlorophenyl) 2,2,2-trifluoroethane which has little or no insecticidal activity did not accumulate in the perirenal fat of rats under similar conditions. This evidence points rather definitely to a relationship between lipoid affinity and insecticidal activity and as such offers an explanation for the mechanism of action of 1,1-bis(p-chlorophenyl) 2,2,2-trichloroethane and related insecticides as suggested by Läuger.

The significance of these data and other evidence in the literature is discussed.