Klarinet Archive - Posting 000682.txt from 1997/03

From: "Diane Karius, Ph.D." <dikarius@-----.EDU>
Subj: Re: Water vs Saliva for wetting reeds
Date: Fri, 21 Mar 1997 04:05:20 -0500

> Now the
> bit about accumulated mucus...that's pretty interesting. It seems
> to point out an explanation for why soaking a "dead" reed in
> hydrogen peroxide will sometimes bring it back to life. Does
> hydrogen peroxide break down mucus and aerate the reed?
>
> Neil
>

I checked it out with a biochemist or two: yes, that is possible -
by oxidizing the bonds within the mucus, that could cause the
mucus to disassociate from the cane etc...
Diane R. Karius, Ph.D.
Department of Physiology
University of Health Sciences
2105 Independence Ave.
Kansas City, MO 64124
email: dikarius@-----.EDU