738 FREDERICK S. HAMMETT 



The latter investigator was unable to detect any distinct seasonal vari- 

 ations in/hese constituents. Malcolm (1904) determined the nitrogen, 

 phosphorus and calcium content of fresh ox pituitaries and found the 

 following percentages present : 



Anterior Lobe Posterior Lobe 



Nitrogen 13.3 12.3 



Phosphorus 0.72 0.8 



Calcium 0.123 whole gland. 



When attention was drawn to the fact that an enlargement of the hy- 

 pophysis is a frequent sequel of athyroidism, either experimentally pro- 

 duced as by Rogowitsch (1889), Degener and Livingston (1913) and 

 others, or induced by pathological conditions as recorded by Schoneman 

 (1892), Comte (1898) and others, the theory of a compensatory hyper- 

 trophy and vicarious functioning of the hypophysis for the thyroid came 

 into vogue and still has Larson (1920) as a supporter. This led to a search 

 for iodin in the pituitary, since the main factor of thyroid function was 

 supposed to be iodin, and consequently, if the hypophysis took over the thy- 

 roid function when this latter gland was pathological, iodin should of neces- 

 sity be found therein as an indication of its pharmacological worth and 

 physiological function. Early results were conflicting. Baumann (1896) 

 failed to prove the presence of iodin in the glands he tested. Schnitzler and 

 Ewald in the same year obtained positive results as did Wells a year later. 

 In 1909 Halliburton, Candler and Sikes, and Simpson and Hunter re- 

 ported that they were unable to find iodin in human or other pituitary 

 glands and the suggestion was made that possibly the previous positive 

 findings had been due to the ingestion of iodin-containing compounds by 

 the subject examined. Wells (&) (1909-10) then made a comparative study 

 of the iodin content from such sources and came to the conclusion that 

 the presence of iodin in normal pituitary glands was unproven. This was 

 definitely confirmed by Denis (1911) for the human and by Seamen 

 (1920) for the sheep. The only conclusion justified from these observa- 

 tions is that the effects produced by pituitary extracts cannot be attributed 

 to this element, nor can the hypophysis be considered on the basis of any 

 iodin containing compound as functioning vicariously for the thyroid. 

 Nevertheless, the findings of Renon and Delille(a) (1908) and of Crowe, 

 dishing and Homans(&) (1910) of marked changes in the thyroid after 

 injections of whole pituitary extracts and hypophysectomy respectively do 

 indicate that there may be some interrelation between the two glands. 



It is probable, however, that these changes observed in the one gland 

 as sequelae of disurbances in the other indicate a metabolic disorder gen- 

 erally distributed throughout the organism. I do not wish to be consid- 

 ered as denying the probability of a supplementary effect of the secretions 

 of these two glands, upon the organism as a whole, but must emphatically 



