712 URINE. 



Several new methods for the determination of the reducing power of the urine 

 have been suggested. 1 



Conjugated glucuronates occur, as indicated by FLUCKIGER and first 

 positive^ shown by MAYER and NEUBERG, 2 in very small amounts in 

 normal urine. They occur chiefly as phenol- and only very small amounts 

 of indoxyl- or skatoxylglucuronates. The quantity of glucuronic acid 

 obtained from the conjugated glucuronates is estimated as 0.04 p. m. by 

 MAYER and NEUBERG. Besides these conjugated glucuionates perhaps 

 the urine sometimes contains the urea glucuronic acid, the ureidoglucu- 

 ronic acid prepared synthetically by NEUBERG and NEiMANN. 3 



Very large amounts of these conjugated glucuronates occur in the 

 urine, on the other hand, after partaking of various therapeutic agents and 

 other substances, such as chloral hydrate, camphor, naphthol, borneol, 

 turpentine, morphine, and many other substances. The elimination 

 of glucuronic acid may be markedly increased in severe disturbances of 

 the respiration, severe dyspnoea, in diabetes mellitus, and by the direct 

 introduction of large amounts of dextrose. According to P. MAYER, 

 as stated on page 215, in the oxidation of dextrose a part of it forms 

 glucuronic acid, hence it is to be expected that the glucuronic acid can 

 in part be derived from the dextrose. As a conjugation of the glucuronic 

 acid with other bodies, such as aromatic atomic complexes, prevents 

 the combustion of this acid in the animal body, it ought to follow that after 

 the introduction of such an atomic complex in the body during a glyco- 

 suria a corresponding reduction of the glucose elimination would take 

 place with the increased excretion of conjugated glucuronates. In order 

 to prove this possibility O. LOEWI 4 fed dogs with camphor during phlor- 

 hizin diabetes and found that the above expectation was not realized. 

 Although large quantities of campho-glucuronic acid were excreted, 

 the sugar excretion was only slightly diminished and not in proportion 

 to the quantity of conjugated glucuronate excreted. These negative 

 results are contradicted by the positive results obtained by PAUL MAYER. S 

 Rabbits normally convert almost all the camphor introduced into 

 conjugated glucuronic acid. MAYER claims that if we allow a rabbit to 

 starve several days the animal becomes so poor in the mother-substance 

 (glycogen) yielding the glucuronic acid that the introduction of camphor 

 only brings about an elimination of small quantities of glucuronic acid. 

 By the simultaneous administration of camphor and dextrose while 



1 See Rosin, Munch, med. Wochenschr., 46; Niemilowicz, Zeitschr. f. physiol. Chem., 

 3ft; Niemilowicz with Gittelmacher-Wilenko, ibid., 36, and Helier, Compt. rend., 129. 



2 Fliickiger, 1. c.; Mayer and Neuberg, Zeitschr. f. physiol. Chem 29 



3 Zeitschr. f. physiol. Chem., 44. 



4 Arch, f . exp. Path. u. Pharm., 47. 

 * Zeitschr. f, klin. Med., 47. 



