VIII. EFFECTS OF DEFICIENCY IN ANIMALS 299 



Iless*^^ stated that the intestine may show a variety of lesions in scorbutic 

 human subjects which may progress to necrosis and extensive ulceration. 

 Meyer''*' found congestion of and hemorrhages into the walls of the duodenum 

 ypiy common in the guinea pig but ulceration was not often observed. He 

 found that the changes in the duodenum, ileum, cecum, and colon were 

 N'ery similar. Smith "*^'' found "no significant impairment of the gastro- 

 intestinal tract of the guinea pig in either acute or chronic scurvy." If, 

 however, the deficiency is imposed on the animal during the period of em- 

 l)ryonic development, striking effects may be seen. In sections of the intes- 

 tine of normal 27-day embryos Harman and Warren^** found that "the 

 epithelial lining was composed of tall columnar cells with distinct cell walls 

 and well-defined nuclei. A definite basement layer was present. Also there 

 was a distinct lumen in the intestine. The section of the intestine of the 

 embryo of the experimental animal which had been on the deficient diet 

 only 6 days showed no definite cell boundaries, the nuclei seemed to be run 

 together, and the whole epithelial lining was sloughed off." 



/. Genitourinary Organs 



Kramer et al}^^ found that the ovaries of animals which had been on a 

 diet devoid of vitamin C for 2 weeks or more showed signs of degeneration. 

 Saffry et al}^^ observed that guinea pigs fed a vitamin C-free diet showed a 

 severe condition of endometrial hyperplasia in contrast to the normal uter- 

 ine tissue of the controls. Lindsay and Medes'^'' showed that atrophy and 

 degeneration of the germinal epthelium in scurvy destroys the reproductive 

 function of the male at an early stage of the deficiency. 



The kidneys are usually paler and often somewhat enlarged in scurvy. 

 Hemorrhages may be found especially in the bladder, both in man and in 

 the guinea pig.®^ Hojer^ found clianges occurring in the kidney which may 

 be summarized as "an atrophy often combined with necrosis and secondary 

 calcification." He found the epithelium of the kidney to be somewhat less 

 sensitive to the deficiency than the cells of the liver and the spleen. Cal- 

 cium deposits were sometimes present which he was inclined to interpret 

 as indicating a strong calcium excretion through the kidney. However, no 

 analyses were made of the calcium content of the urine. Meyer^* observed 

 that hemorrhages both focal and diffuse were common in all portions of 

 the kidney and destruction of the renal epithelium was complete in places. 

 The kidneys of Russell and Callaway's scorbutic guinea pigs'*^ were more 



'84b E. A. Smith, Am. J. Physiol. 80, 288 (1927). 



'85 M. M. Kramer, M. T. Harmaii, ami A. K. Brill, Am. J. Physiol. 106, GU (1933). 



'88 D. Saffry, M. T. Harman, ami M. M. Kramer, Trans. Kansas Acad. Sci. 40, 389 



(1937). 

 '87 B. Lindsay and G. Modes, Am. J. Anat. 37, 213 (1926). 



