112 FRANK A. HARTMAN 



confirmation at the hands of later workers with the exception of Boinet(o-), 

 who not only describes pigmentation but says that hematoidin-like gran- 

 ules are found in the blood of rats which survived suprarenal extirpa- 

 tion a long time. 



Although it was carefully sought for, Langlois(/) never discovered, in 

 all of his experiments, any clear case of pigmentation. The rare modifica- 

 tions observed either in the mucous membranes or the hairs were no more 

 marked than in normal animals. Harley(fr) and Stilling have likewise 

 never seen pigmentation develop in experimental suprarenal insufficiency. 



If one examines a normal animal closely, he notices that there are 

 frequently many variations in color of the skin or mucous membrane 

 which might easily be attributed to excessive pigment formation had 

 the suprarcnals been removed. Therefore until observations are con- 

 trolled by actually mapping the location and intensity of such variation 

 before capsulectomy, all pigmentation described in experimental supra- 

 renal insufficiency must be doubted. 



Gastro-intestinal Symptoms. Changes are produced in the alimen- 

 tary canal by epineplirectomy.< Undisputed proof of this is found in 

 the gastric ulcers which have been frequently described in decapsulated 

 animals (Freidmann, Elliott (/), Mann). In this connection it should be 

 mentioned that Goodman has described pathological changes in the supra- 

 renals of five cases of gastro-duodenal ulcer. Diarrhea, although rare, has 

 occasionally been described (Elliott and Tuckett). We have also noted 

 it in rare instances. 



These changes may contribute to the loss of appetite which is prev- 

 alent in the later stages of suprarenal insufficiency. The loss of ap- 

 petite together with a possible reduction in digestion and absorption 

 might, well be the cause of loss in weight of the animal. The cause of the 

 changes in the alimentary canal is at present unknown. 



Conditions in the Autonomic Nervous System. Elliott suggested 

 that the symptoms exhibited after removal of the suprarenals are clue 

 to a hindrance of the activities of tissues especially innervated by the 

 sympathetic nervous system. They lost tone and might fail to respond 

 to electrical stimulation of the nerves. So they might fail to respond to 

 the normal physiological impulses. Thus blood pressure falls progres- 

 sively and the heart beat weakens. He found that under such conditions 

 nicotin was unable to effect a rise in blood pressure even if atropin were 

 given to prevent inhibition of the/ heart. Neither pituitary extract 

 nor barium chlorid seemed to have any effect upon the blood vessels, but 

 epinephrin still produced a rise in blood pressure almost as great as 

 normal. Such vasomotor paralysis was found only in very weak and 

 moribund cats. It was suggested that such a deficiency might be due to the 

 absence of epinephrin. In other words, that this substance was necessary 

 for the maintenance of sympathetic irritability. 



