Aqueous formaldehyde is shown to exert both sporostatic and sporocidal effects on Bacillus subtilis spores. The sporostatic effect is a result of the reversible inhibition of spore germination occasioned by aqueous formaldehyde; the sporocidal effect is due to temperature-dependent inactivation of these spores in aqueous formaldehyde. The physicochemical state of formaldehyde in solution provides a framework with which to interpret both the sporostatic and sporocidal properties of aqueous formaldehyde.
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