Abstract
It has been reported 1 on the basis of a single test that nicotinuric acid has a curative action in canine blacktongue, and reference has been made to the “antipellagra value” of nicotinuric acid in a recent review. 2
We have tested the curative activity of a specimen of nicotinuric acid prepared from glycine ethyl ester and nicotinoyl-chloride by the procedure of Meyer and Graf 3 ; melting point 240-41° (Meyer and Graf found 237-8°), neutral equivalent 184 (theoretical 182.7).
The arrangement of the test and basal diet were as previously described. 4 Four dogs were used. With the first 2 dogs curative tests were made by our standard procedure, with daily subcutaneous doses of 6 mg and 8 mg respectively per kg body weight for 5 days. The results were negative. In a third dog given 6 mg per kg a partial cure was obtained, and subsequently a preventive dose of 1 mg per kg daily was given, and the dog declined and died during this treatment. The fourth dog was given 3 mg per kg daily and was completely cured except that its normal weight was not fully restored. The dosing was continued for 60 days, during which time the dog remained healthy. Ten days after the last dose it began to decline rapidly and after 7 days more it died of severe blacktongue. These effects may be contrasted with those due to nicotinic acid itself. In our curative method a daily dose of 1 mg per kg for 5 days produces optimum response; and on basal diets of this type the daily dose needed for prevention of blacktongue is about 0.1 mg per kg. 5
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