Abstract
Raab 1 has demonstrated that injections of pituitrin diminish the concentration of plasma fat of unanesthetized animals. The present work is concerned not only with the effects of pituitrin, but also those of pitocin and pitressin on the concentration and fat content of plasma and blood sugar. Eighteen experiments were made on unanesthetized dogs and 21 were performed under amytal on dogs weighing from 6 to 24 kilos and in various nutritive conditions. The dosage of the chloretone-free extracts varied from 10 cc. to 30 cc.∗ Blood was drawn from the femoral artery, usually at 2 hourly intervals and analyzed for sugar by the method of Hagedorn-Jensen. 2 The fat content was determined according to the procedure of Stewart and White. 3 Table I presents the changes in fats, plus and minus indicating changes of at least 40 mg. per cent. Table II contains the effects of the posterior pituitary extracts on the total solids of the plasma. The smallest difference is 3 mg. per cc. of plasma.
The effects of the extracts on blood glucose are presented in Table III. Changes of glucose are at least 5 mg. per cent.
The effects of pituitrin in diminishing the concentration of the plasma and its fat content as well as in raising blood sugar are also caused by pitocin and pitressin. These actions on the blood constituents are not so marked, or are actually changed, under amytal anesthesia.
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