238 SWALE VINCENT 



Thyroid Transplantation 



Very numerous thyroid transplantation experiments of different kinds 

 and upon different animals have been carried out but it is not easy to 

 gather from the literature how many of such experiments have been com- 

 pletely successful. It is quite clear that a large majority have been quite 

 unsuccessful. The grafted tissue has rapidly degenerated and dis- 

 appeared. In other cases a process of regeneration has set in and the 

 grafted thyroid tissue has remained alive arid presumably functional for 

 many months. 



Heteroplastic transplantations (the grafting of thyroid from one 

 animal into another of a different species) is always unsuccessful. Homoio 

 transplantation (grafting from one animal into another of the same 

 species) can only have been successful in a small number of cases. Auto- 

 transplantation (grafting of pieces of thyroid of an animal into different 

 regions of the same animal) was shown by Cristiani to be possible, that the 

 grafts "take" and that they are functionally active for a long period- 

 Another kind of transplantation has been recently studied by Loeb (c). 

 This he calls "syngenesioplastic" (transplantation into nearly-related in- 

 dividuals of the same species). The results obtained by this method in 

 guinea-pigs are intermediate between those obtained after auto- and 

 homoio-transplantation. The thyroid behaves for a time like an auto- 

 transplanted tissue, but is finally destroyed by lymphocytic infiltration. 



The vascular suture method of Carrel and Guthrie (a) (&) has placed 

 at our disposal a means of grafting entire glands or lobes of thyroid. These 

 authors removed the thyroid of a dog from its original position and re- 

 placed it in the neck. The vessels were anastomosed and circulation was 

 set up. The gland retained its normal function. 



Using this method, Stick and Makkas report ten cases 3 autoplastic, 

 of which 2 succeeded, the subjects living 51 and 2-15 days, respectively. 

 The rest of the cases (one autoplastic, Y homoioplastic) were unsuccessful. 

 The transplanted gland was found necrosed or not found at all. 



Groves and Joll report what they consider to be a successful case of 

 homoiotransplantation in the human subject. This was carried put by 

 the old method (without vessel suture) . 



The Relation of the Thyroid to the Sexual Functions 



A relation between the thyroid and the sexual functions in women has 

 been popularly recognized for ages. The thyroid is relatively larger in 

 women than in men, and this is specially noticeable during puberty, men- 

 struation and pregnancy. The proper development of the reproductive 



