Comparative Toxicity and Metabolism of p, p’-DDT and Various Substituted DDT-Derivatives by Susceptible and Resistant House Flies1

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Abstract
Comparative toxicity tests with DDT and o-Cl-substituted DDT-derivatives showed that o-Cl-DDT was the most toxic compound to DDT-resistant house flies, Musca domestica L. Steric hindrance caused by the a-chlorine atom reduces the enzymatic dehydrochlorination of the and, correspondingly, restores its toxicity against the resistant strains. One strain, highly resistant to o-Cl-DDT, did not dehydrochlorinate the latter compound to a great extent, but the resistance mechanism is not known. Deuterated-DDT is only slightly more toxic than DDT to DDT-resistant house flies. At low dosages the latter can dehydrochlorinate dentero-DDT with equal facility as ordinary DDT, hut at higher dosages an isotope effect on dehydrochlorination is evident.