THE PITUITARY BODY 



To some, as to Corkill, Marks, and White (1934), it has 

 seemed that the chief effect of hypophysectomy on the carbo- 

 hydrate metaboHsm is a derangement of the normal mecha- 

 nisms for the deposition and hberation (in and from deposits 

 Hke the hepatic glycogen) of carbohydrate. Their work (in 

 the hypophysectomized rabbit) as well as that of others sup- 

 ports this belief. The increased insulin-sensitivity and the 

 diminished effect of epinephrin on the blood-sugar concentra- 

 tion (and on the excretion of glucose in the urine) are con- 

 sistent with this view, which is also supported by the reports 

 of a diminished sugar tolerance in the hypophysectomized 

 dog (but not by reports to the contrary in hypophysecto- 

 mized toads and rabbits). Usually hypophysectomy is not 

 followed by a striking change in the concentration of hepatic 

 glycogen; however, the change is in the direction of a reduc- 

 tion. According to Corkill, Marks, and White, insulin causes 

 a deposition of glycogen in the liver of the young normal 

 rabbit, but not if hypophysectomy has been performed. 

 Phillips and Robb (1934) concluded that the storage of 

 glycogen in both the liver and the striated muscle took place 

 at a slower rate in hypophysectomized than in normal rats. 

 In the experiments of Fluch, Greiner, and Loewi (1935) the 

 livers of normal frogs and of frogs from which the pars 

 glandularis had been removed were perfused with Ringer's 

 solution sometimes containing a low concentration of epine- 

 phrin. Extirpation of the pars glandularis had no effect on 

 the amount of the hepatic glycogen. As a result of perfusion, 

 however, more glucose was liberated from the normal livers 

 than from those of the frogs lacking the pars glandularis. The 

 differences observed were more striking when the perfusion 

 was performed with Ringer's solution containing epinephrin. 



From their observations on the effects of phlorhizin in 

 hypophysectomized dogs Houssay and his collaborators con- 

 cluded that hypophysectomy interferes with the formation of 

 carbohydrate from protein (see pp. 62-63). 



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