EFFECTS OF INANITION IN THE PREGNANT ALBINO RAT. 



129 



(14) The weight changes observed in the individual organs in the test rats 

 during prenatal inanition, as compared with normal fetuses of the same body- 

 weight, show the following average percentage differences in weight : 



p. ct. 



Brain -j-12 



Spinal cord -II 26 



Eyeballs +31 



Thymus -21 



Heart + 8 



p. ct. 



Lungs —39 



Liver — 45 



Spleen +34 



Stomach with contents — 4 

 Stomach empty + 6 



p. ct. 

 Intestines with eon- 

 tents +15 



Intestines empty . . — 2 



Pancreas — 0.20 



Suprarenals —52 



p. ct. 



Kidneys ■ + 



Testes + 10 



Epididymides .... + 17 



Ovaries + 1.3 



Thyroid — 20 



(15) In general, therefore, it may be stated that the spleen, eyeballs, epididy- 

 mides, testes, and brain manifest a fairly strong growth tendency during prenatal 

 inanition, the tendency decreasing in the order named. A slight growth tendency 

 is manifested by the heart, kidneys, stomach, and ovaries, decreasing in the order 

 named. A retardation in growth during prenatal inanition increasing in the order 

 named is shown by the pancreas, spinal cord, intestines, thymus, thyroid, lungs, 

 liver, and suprarenals. 



(16) In general, the organs and systems that have been found to gain greatly 

 during postnatal inanition (in the newborn rats) are, during prenatal inanition, also 

 above normal weight, but to a much less degree; while those below or but slightly 

 above normal weight during postnatal inanition show a still greater loss in prenatal 

 inanition. Thus, during inanition, the growth impulse of the organs appears as a 

 rule weaker in the prenatal than in the postnatal period. It should be noted, how- 

 ever, that the exact nature of the prenatal inanition is somewhat uncertain. 



Table 1. — Data on female albino rats starved (luring la.il half of pregnancy mid resulting litters. 



1 Starved moderately for 11 days after copulation, then starved severely from eleventh to twenty-fourth day of preg- 

 nancy. Note: Rats B2 and B43 were underfed during two pregnancies. 



