

PHYSIOLOGY AND EXPEKIMENTAL PATHOLOGY 725 



hope of producing the disease or at least of causing some skeletal or 

 metabolic changes which might be comparable to those observed in this 

 disease. Several metabolic studies have been made upon animals being 

 fed hypophyses. 



Thompson and Johnson fed dogs the whole dried gland of the sheep, 

 horse and calf. Animals so fed lost weight and excreted excessive amounts 

 of nitrogen and phosphorus. The results were apparently more marked 

 when the glands of young animals were fed. Oswald gave dogs 2 to 3 gm. 

 daily of dried hypophysis (whether whole gland or portion of the same 

 not mentioned) but could not detect any change in the elimination of 

 nitrogen or P 2 O 5 . 



Malcolm fed dogs daily 2 to 3 gm. of dried anterior lobe for five days. 

 A slight nitrogen retention and a slightly increased P 2 O 5 and Ca output 

 were noticed in them. After feeding posterior lobe (10 gm.) there was 

 noticed a slightly increased output of P 2 O 5 and a markedly increased 

 output of Ca. When fresh whole glands were fed there was scarcely any 

 change in the Ca or Mg output. 



Franchini injected rabbits intravenously daily with an amount of 

 extract equivalent to one whole hypophysis. These injections were fol- 

 lowed by an increased excretion of Ca, Mg and P 2 5 in both the urine and 

 feces. The loss in P 2 O 5 was less marked than that of Ca and Mg. These 

 animals lost weight and finally died. The injections did not have much 

 effect upon some of the animals ; while others developed marked dyspnea, 

 vomiting and diarrhea. In some of the animals intestinal ulcerations 

 were found at autopsy. No definite conclusions can be drawn from these 

 experiments as to the effects of hypophyseal feeding upon metabolism, 

 because the findings are so indefinite and because of difficulties of control. 



Few of the early feeding experiments were satisfactory because no 

 attempts were made to feed the parts of the gland separately. When the 

 extract has been administered subcutaneously or intravenously (Cerletti, 

 Franchini, Delille, Caselli) marked constitutional disturbances such as 

 vomiting and diarrhea, accompanied by intestinal ulceration have been 

 observed. 



The possibility that these constitutional symptoms are not due entirely 

 to the extract cannot be eliminated and therefore it is difficult to draw 

 conclusions regarding the actual effects of hypophyseal extracts upon body 

 growth and metabolism. Cerletti and Franchini report loss of weight and 

 delayed bone development. In their experiments the entire gland was used 

 but the injections were continued for but a few days. Caselli injected 

 young dogs and rabbits with glycerin extracts. No effect upon growth 

 was noted. Delille reports increased deposits of fat in rabbits after inject- 

 ing them for a period of fourteen months with extracts of the whole gland. 



Landri fed rats the hypophysis exclusively for two months, the con- 



