• Applied Biological Chemistry
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• v.44 no.4
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• pp.257-261
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• 2001

Leather (skin & hide) is a body organ, comprising 3 to 5% of the animals weight. The cross-section of a leather is composed of two major divisions: the epidermis or grain layer and the corium or split layer. The leather is naturally covered with bacteria and fungi, because it is a particularly rich source of a wide variety of microorganisms. Stains or coatings of different colours occur in patches or over large areas, depending on the type of mould spore infestation. We examined the antibiotic effect of leather after washing. Upon applying equal fungicide, antibiotic effects increased as follows: grain layer>middle layer>flesh layer. Antibiotic effect decreased with increasing frequency of washing. Decrease in antibiotic effect was lower in OITZ fungicide than in TCMTB and CMK fungicides. Sulfated fatliquor showed higher antibiotic effect than phosphated fatliquor.