ABILITY OF SOVIET MICROBIOLOGISTS

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP80-00809A000600030575-1
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: C
• Document Page Count: 3
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: August 2, 2011
• Sequence Number: 575
• Publication Date: March 10, 1953
• Content Type: REPORT

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CLASSIFICATION COTIDrTIAI,/S&cTJRITY IPL'USMATIGNT
CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY
;NFORMATION REPORT F
DATE DISTR. /() ~'IRQ
SUBJECT Ability of Soviet
Microbiologists NO OF PAGES 3
PLACE
NO. OF ENCLS.
ACQUIRED
(LISTED BELOW)
DATE
SUPPLEMENT TO
ACQUIRED
REPORT NO.
General Statement of Opinion
the Westerc World
et the
present isfe system zae ianent e s cannot e ~ ves free because
the always must be sfra'.ct that the interpretation of their discoveries ?_.3uld he
recognized as countcrrevo_utionsry or not enough Marxistic. They always have to
2. "It is right that Russians follow very thoroughly and systematically the foreign
scientific literature, buC]cannot believe that by the isolation of Soviets
from the Western World's creative thought the wellspringp of Soviet progress
would dry up, its technology will become sterile and its rate of technical and
scientific advance will lag further and further behind that of the Western World.
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General Review Of Russian Microbiology
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year. It is strictly that they follow the Western World's scientific literature
very thoroughly. One could find very good articles (review) for instance, about
antibiotics and one could see that they produce their own penicillin. There was
a G F Gauze (this is not a Russian name, but perhaps a German) who wrote in
')Ucrobiology', volume 19, pp 79, 3.950, a review, 'The Newest Results in the
Antibiotic Studies' where he describes the newest antibiotics - neomycin, chloro
mycetin, and aureomycin. His references were many foreign authors.
actinomycetes composed by Russian scientist Kraaeiiinkov (he'has written two
books about that) is more proved and correct than that omposed by Americars
Vakeman and Henrici.
expect sr4h discoveries in &31 the branches connected with bacterial or biological
vikftrt. and"ia second'hind:in th& ditf&rent-irate of fermef:tatiofl,"decoasposition,
and utilization' of wood pulp, peat and other kinds of cellulose.` Russians have
enormous supplies of this material.
Russians will pay.more attention upon this little known group of organisms. If
Russians could find, for iinetance, a'thermophilic actinomycete that prcdu?.es a
useful antibiotic It would be's large achievement. The advantage of thnrropbilic
organisms in antibiotic production would be as follows: 'The fermentation tiro
instead of three to tive days could be reduced to 16, 20,-or 24 hours. In such
a e::ort time and at the fermentation at 500 - 600 C level, the risk of infettior
,ro 'd be reduced to mini wa bicause'at such a high temperature the principal
part of contaminants .snot wore deveipp. Juet this rink of contAmination is
one of circumstances that makes'the production of antibiotic's so expensive.
Soviet Xicrobt?logical Laboratories/Significant Accomplishments of the Soviets/
Publication Referencen to uynort Accomp i ents
7. "Due to the lack of available' literature o data upon'locatibus of Sovii't
laboratorians working in microbiolog nor upon their accoosplishmente or
independent invert', atioiis since'19X8. ' But even if this liteFituFe`veieP attaiz,-
able re valukble.diicoveries"gill dot be'p}ibliehed' open tc
the ublic. Russians' have more'or'less 'valiuble` discoveries iu
philic Microorganiams'in Nature add Practice' by H Mishustin. This author has
already publiohed material' aboutthermophilic microorganisms and this 390 page
book is a review about this group of microorganisms (published in 1950; Moscow).
6. "In connection with actinomycetes inters t -;he sc-
called thermophilic group or ese orgaiiisme theT.A wra
so little written in the literature about' these organisms. In'the last weeks E
r_ a New York catalogue announcement of s Eussian book just about 'Thera.-
8: "Let us mention only the following three.names of Russian microbiologists:
a) J J $etchnikoff ~? the founder of phagocytes theory.
b) N Dinogradaky - ecologisc, explainer of nitrification process in the soil.
After 1918 revolution he left Russia
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 COiFI'D3N= I,/SFI;ulaTY I IFOSMATION
c) feu) Omeljansk. studied the fermentation' of pect:inn and cellulose;
nitrogen-fixing phenomenrn by microorganisms,, etc.,,
which were already world known before 193.8 - this
shows that Russians are capeble of producing' world
known scientists and explorers.
9. "The present 'living system as was mentioned above does not allow the 'Russian
.scientists to work freely and fearlessly but there i s no reason tun assume that
Russian scientists are not at all capable of inventing something.
10. "In the January 19$0 issue'of the Russian 'Microbiology'.there is publ:,-Iied a
.review, 'The Soviet Microbiology in the Years of Stalin's Five-year periods'.
In this article there are meni,ioned about 80 Russian microbiologists after 1918
.and the branches where they, together with their coworkers or students have
investigations that were typicalll Russian discoveries. One could find state-
ment s that are ridiculous, 'but lithe chief editor in every scientific
journal or book is not the scientist but the Communist party official: they
wrote, for instance,'that now it is proved that as'early as the 19tki century
the Russian microbiologists V A Manassein and.A G Folctebnov, discovered that
penicillorum fungi prodiuces an antibiotic that.coald be useful in human medicine.
Interpretation of Sigaificauce, Methodology and Reaults- ected from Soviet
Microbiologists
11. "It is known that Russian scien.i is sometimes exaggerate their results.. For
.example, shortly before?Wn.,id War II that Russians published that by means of
soil inoculation with asotabacter (sic)'cultures they succeeded in firing
nitrogen from the air in the soil. - Very intensity investigations after that itt
Germany'and Sweden and in the other countries developed the fact that their- results
were not truth. On the other hand, would be wrong toessume that all Russ exi
achievomeats and investigations 'are doubtful.
.biology but even that means mica when va know that.they follow and have k,c.1eig=
about the currant achievemeAts of the 'western World and are capable after
a one year period to reproduce it in their country:
Russians are behind the Westera World in the field of m3,ro-
lZ. "a) From Russian scisntific literature 'in microbiology one dust conclude that they
have a clear. knowledge about the achievements in Western World and with about
"b) The Russian scientists are not- less capable investigators that those of the
. . Western World.
a one yeas- period they follow
"e) The Russia.: laborator_en Are equipped, with modern German micxeacopes and
scientific apparatus (after literature r.oviews).
"d) In relation 'to; all that is cofMected with a ;,woeible b'adt'rrio-'."og;,cal or
biological warfare, Odin expect from Russians different surprices not,
only because' the Russian morals admit such things but because the Western
ty~ ~d!? ,mo *ls, cannot admit'. but eapeciialy' because to the Ruseiana is
accessibie very extensive 'experimentil materialj naaely.9 men in'the slave
cams'- to other country' in the world has, nor can have, such experimental
material.
"e)L cannot fudge Russian technical aad'general science on the basis of their
low living standard. Between. the current Soviet generation there are many
fanatical CommAmists, which fan, ticm ..a also carried into the field of
science. For these people Commuuism does not mean only a political program
end
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