248 ILLINOIS ACADEMY OF SCIENCE 



in a small blood vessel (thrombosis) or by the ligation of the 

 vessel. Under such conditions the area is digested by the 

 pepsin with the formation of an ulcer. The decreased re- 

 sistance of the areas rendered anemic by cutting off the blood 

 supply has usually been attributed to the deprivation of the 

 areas of nutrition. The frequency of the occurence of gastric 

 ulcer among anemic persons has led many to consider anemia 

 a predisposing factor in the production of ulcer. Lesions 

 produced in the mucosa of normal healthy animals heal, as a 

 rule, with more or less ease. If, however, the animal is ren- 

 dered anemic by bleeding or by the introduction of some 

 hemolytic agent, thus reducing the oxidative processes, lesions 

 in the gastric mucosa heal very tardily. When the blood sup- 

 ply to a portion of the mucosa is cut off, among other things, 

 the part is deprived of oxygen and for that reason the oxi- 

 dative processes are decreased. 



Araki 1 showed that the oxidative processes are decreased in 

 rabbits rendered anemic by bleeding. In phosphorus poison- 

 ing the oxidative processes of the body are decreased 2 , and it 

 has been observed that under these conditions the tendency of 

 the tissues to undergo autolysis is increased 3 . In diseases of 

 the circulatory and respiratory systems, where the amount of 

 oxygen is decreased and hence the oxidative processss are de- 

 creased, there is a great tendency of all the tissues to undergo 

 self-digestion/ These facts would seem to point to some re- 

 lation between the oxidative processes of the body and the 

 resistance of the tissues to the digestive action of the proteo- 

 lytic enzymes. Burge 8 showed that pepsin as well as trypsin 

 is easily destroyed by oxidation. LilUe" showed that the cells 

 of the gastric mucosa possess intense oxidative properties. 



In view of the fact that pepsin is easily destroyed by oxi- 

 dation, that the cells of the mucosa possess oxidative proper- 

 ties, and that these cells become easily digested when these 

 properties are decreased, the hypothesis is advanced that the 

 mucosa is not digested under normal conditions because the 



^raki: Ztschr. f. physiol. Chem., 1894, XIX, 424. 



a Welsch: Arch, internat. de pharmacod. et de therap., 1905, XIV, 211. Ries: 

 Berl. klin. Wchnschr., 1905, XLII, 44a, 54. 



a Jacoby: Ztschr. f. physiol. Chem. 1900, XXX, 174. 



4 Schlesinger: Beitr. z. chem. Physiol, u. Path. (Hofmeister's), 1904, IV. 87. 



"Burge: Am. Jour. Physiol., 1915, XXXVII, 462. 



•Lillie: Am. Jour. Physiol., 1902, VII. 413. 



