(Reproduced from SciFinder, with permission from the Chemical Abstracts Service) The effect of two membrane-active agents, Triton X-100 and n-octyl-beta-D-glucopyranoside, on B. subtilis 168 was studied. When present in the growth medium, the detergents decreased the extracellular proteolytic activity. The electrophoretic patterns of proteins in the presence or in the absence of these agents differ significantly.