The action of sodium azide on cellular respiration and on some catalytic oxidation reactions

Abstract

Azoimide, HN 3 , was prepared by Curtius in 1890. Loew (1891) studied the effect of this acid and of its sodium salt on a great variety of organisms such as bacteria, moulds, algae, seedlings of plants, ciliates, worms, Crustacea, insect larvae, and vertebrates. He found it toxic to these organisms but, while some of them died within 2 or 3 hours in 0·5% solution of this salt, other organisms were killed only after 20-40 hours or even 4-6 days by 0·1% solution of NaN 3 , and ciliates withstood this concentration for even 12 days. According to Loew, the toxic effect produced by this salt is due to its decomposition accompanied by the liberation of ammonia. This inter­pretation was not accepted by other workers, and it is now generally accepted that the poisonous effect produced by this substance is due to the action of the nitrogen anion. N ║ N—. N/