Abstract
A study was made of the water and chloride metabolism of dogs during the development of low serum protein edema. The sites of deposition of water and chloride were determined by analyses of tissues obtained at autopsy.
Dogs were fed a diet of known amount and composition. After a control period of one to 2 weeks, blood was removed every day for 1 to 7 days, was deprived of its plasma, and the washed cells suspended in calcium-free Locke's solution were returned to the animal. Blood and urine analyses were performed during both the control and experimental periods.
At suitable junctures in the experimental periods, the dogs were sacrificed by carbon monoxide gas and immediately autopsied. Tissues were removed and analyzed for water and chloride content. The values found on 7 dogs were compared with the average values of tissues taken from 3 dogs that had been subjected to various control procedures, and sacrificed and autopsied exactly as the hypopro-teinemic animals.
Edema was found to occur consistently when the serum protein concentration was belowT 4.0%. The occurrence of the edema was associated with retention of sodium chloride and water, and the retained chloride and water were recovered with considerable accuracy in the tissues analyzed. Skin stored most of the water while most of the retained chloride was found in muscle. The retained water and chloride constituted an isotonic concentration in the skin and a hypertonic concentration in muscle.
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