THE RELATIVE TOXICITY OF THE HALIDES AND CER- 

 TAIN OTHER ANIONS. 



By a. T. CAMERON and M. S. HOLLENBERG. 



(From tite Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine, University of Manitoba, 



Winnipeg.) 



(Received for publication, December 28, 1921.) 



When iodides are administered in ordinary doses excretion takes 

 place rapidly. Heavy doses can usually be administered before 

 toxic symptoms develop. The same is true to an even greater extent 

 of bromides. The bromide ion appears to be capable of replacing 

 the chloride ion to a considerable degree in the body fluid of mammals 

 without the production of distinct toxic symptoms. Thus Frey 

 (191(>-11) has shown that while administration of sodium bromide 

 (to rabbits) leads at first to increased excretion of sodium chloride, 

 if the relative amounts in the diet are kept constant bromide and 

 chloride excretion become parallel; while an animal kept for some time 

 on a deficient chloride diet, and then fed bromide, tends to retain 

 bromide equally with chloride. 



There is evidence that some at any rate of the toxic symptoms 

 following heavy administration of bromide are actually due to too 

 great a depletion of chloride from the body, and not to the bromide 

 ion (cf. Wolff and Opp, 1912). 



After bromide administration hydrobromic acid occurs in the gas- 

 tric juice (Wolff and Opp). 



Similarly Herzfeld and Heimann (1911) have shown that after 

 administration of iodide the excretion of chlorides and iodides is in 

 inverse ratio. Hydriodic acid occurs in the gastric juice after iodide 

 administration, and iodide is found in saliva, tears, perspiration, milk, 

 sebum, and the secretion of the nasal mucous membrane (Cushny, 

 1918). 



It is to be noted that Hale and Fishman (1908) state that bromide 

 is excreted more slowly than corresponding doses of iodide. 



411 



