Production of Anatomical Lesions in the Isolated Organ.

Abstract

Since the frog's kidney has proved such a suitable organ for the investigations of the physiologist it seems likely that an examination of its structure and activity under abnormal conditions might be of value. The present report concerns one aspect of such a study. We have previously described the lesions in the frog's kidney when renal toxic agents, including potassium bichromate, corrosive sublimate, uranium nitrate and snake venom, are injected into the living animal. 1 The next step has been the elaboration of a method to test their functional activity, and in this procedure it was found advisable to isolate the organ and perfuse it with a modified Locke's solution. 2 While it was functioning normally under these controlled conditions the same toxic agents were administered by way of the perfusion fluid and the resulting disturbance of functional activity noted. These will be described at another time. 3 The tissues were then fixed and examined histologically.

In this study our first procedure was to determine that normal perfusion of the organ produced no structural changes. It was found that after 6 hours of such treatment the most delicate cytological structures such as the brush border of the epithelial cells, the mitochondrial elements and the achromatic spindle of mitotic figures, which are occasionally found in the frog's kidney, were entirely normal in appearance.

In the tissues of the damaged kidneys all the pathological lesions that had developed in the kidneys of the living animal after poisoning with the same toxic agents were observed, except those which require a longer time for their development than was available in the experiment or which depend on the presence of the circulating blood. The epithelial lesions were localized to that part of the tubule which was most susceptible in the living animal.