THE BEAUTY OF THE ENZYME SCREEN 273 A great deal of material is presented, some new, some old, some promising and some as yet of unknown value. The following should be kept in mind: (1) The field of oral enzymology as a means of understanding oral tissue metabolic processes is in the early phases of development, expansion, and appreciation. (2) Dentistry has much to learn from those disciplines in the field of biology which have provided all of the background and basic infor- mation which has made these studies possible. (3) Our ability in the future to describe satisfactorily, logically and scientifically the so-called normal and so-called abnormal states encountered in stomatology will depend on stomatological research oriented towards the understanding of the meta- bolic processes which occur in the various tissues of the oral cavity. (4) As these metabolic patterns are elucidated, described and utilized as a basis for therapy, better and more dependable products will become available to both the medical and dental profession. REFERENCES (1) Davenport, H. W., Physiol. Rev., 26, 506-573 (1946). (2) Roblin, R. O., Jr., and Clapp, J. W., )e. ,4m. Chem. Soc., 72, 48904897 (1950). (3) Hexahydropyrimidine Symposium, Northwestern University, October, 1958. (4) Lisanti, C. F., and Chauncey, H. H., Int. •lssoc.for Dent. Res., Thirty-Fourth General Meeting, March 22-25, St. Louis, Mo. (1956). (5) Mahler, I. R., and Lisanti, V. F., Oral Surg., Oral Med. and Oral Path., 5, 1235 (1952). (6) Lisanti, V. F., Unpublished 1952. (7) Joseph, J. M., and Shay, D. E., Bact. Proc., May 27, 1951. (8) Fleming, A., and Allison, V. D., Brit. )e. Exptl. Pathol., 8, 2, 214 (1927) Fleming, A., Proc. Roy. Soc. Med., 26 (1932). (9) Ridley, F.,lbid., 21, 1495 (1928). (10) Meyer, K., Gillhorn, A., Lehman, W. L., and Sternberg, A., Proc. Soc. Exptl. Biol. and Med., 65, 221 (1947). (11) Lisanti, V. F., )e. Dent. Res., 29, 392 (1950). (12) Johnson, V. M., Chauncey, H. H., and Lisanti, V. F., Int. •lssoc.for Dent. Res., Thirty- Fourth General Meeting, March 22-25, St. Louis, Mo., 1956. (13) Lorina, P. L., Lisanti, V. F., and Chauncey, H. H., OralSurg., OralMed. and Oral Path., 7, 998 (1954). (14) Chauncey, H. H., Lionetti, F., Weiner, F. A., and Lisanti, V. F., 5 e. Dent. Res., :33, 321 (1953). (15) Giddon, D. A., and Lisanti, V. F., A.A.A.S., Atlanta, Ga., Dec. 28, 1955. (16) Hoerman, K. C., Chauncey, H. H., and Herrold, R. D., Caner, 12, 359 (1959). (17) Lisanti, V. F., and Lionetti, F., y. Den. Res., t8, 846 (1959). (18) Lisanti, V. F., Eichel, B., and Lionetti, F., (Unpublished data) (1959). (19) Lisantl, V. F., and Lionetti, F., (Unpublished data) (1959). (20) These studies were supported in part by the Office of Naval Research, The Warner- Lambert Co. and by Grant D 1205 from the National Institute of Dental Research, U.S. Public Health Service.

THE ROLE OF THE COSMETIC SCIENTIST IN THE PROTECTION OF PUBLIC HEALTH By RAYMOND E. REED* Presented at the/26lb Meeting, ,'treerican /lssociation for the ztdvancemenl of Science THE ROLE OF the scientist in the protection of public health is an important one indeed. Some of you may not appreciate how broad an assignment this is for the cosmetic scientist. A letter reached my desk about eight years ago that will help me make my point. It dealt with one ,of our better known products. June 21, 1951 Toni Company Chicago, Illinois Dear Sir: I took a Toni permanent about three months ago and it came out OK. My problem is ] just came from the doctor and he tells me I'm three months pregnant. The same thing happened last year. Is there something in the lotion could do this? I like curly hair just fine, but too many kids is a problem. Please write. Yours truly, XXXXXXXXXXXX I ant not sure that our symposium was intended to embrace this par- ticular aspect of public health, but I can report that the evidence thus far indicates that my product had nothing to do with it. The health implications of foods' and drugs are well recognized. The health implications of cosmetics, on the other hand, are less appreciated and less understood. Before discussing the role of the cosmetic scientist in the protection of public health, I should like to discuss briefly the role of cosmetics in our daily lives. From a physical standpoint, cosmetics are products that affect our senses. As basic as sensory reactions are to our very existence, it is nevertheless true that the moral critics of human society have been unwilling to accept cosmetics as playing any useful part in our existence. As pointed out by Wax (1), this point of view may well stem from the Bible, for Isaiah adopted the destructively critical view of cosmetics with his words: * The Toni Company, Chicago 54, Illinois. 274