524 



DIABETES 



2H 2 O 



Administration of glycerin has been found to increase the amount of 

 sugar in the urine in glycosuria. No direct evidence that the higher 

 fatty acids form carbohydrates has yet been brought forward, but v. 

 Noorden believes that this must occur, since in some cases of diabetes 

 he has found more sugar in the urine than could be accounted for by the 

 other known sources, including glycerin. 



B. Other Substances Causing Glycosuria. A large 

 number of substances may cause a greater or less amount of 

 glycosuria, when taken by mouth. Presumably they act in 

 different ways. Some of them may stimulate the glycogenic 

 center ; this seems to be the cause of the glycosuria following 

 injections of slightly hypertonic solutions of sodium salts (and 

 which can be checked by calcium solutions), for when the 

 splanchnic nerves are cut glycosuria ceases (Martin Fischer l ). 

 Strychnine, phosphorus, arsenic, uranium salts, bichloride of 

 mercury, carbon monoxid, amyl nitrite, curare, chloral, nitro- 

 benzol, chloroform, acetone, ether, etc., 2 may all cause glyco- 

 suria, but for most of them the point of attack has not been 

 determined. Probably some, like salt solution, and also mor- 

 phine, attack chiefly the glycogenic center. Others, among 

 which may be included alcohol and the toxins of acute infectious 

 diseases, seem to injure the pancreas particularly. Caffein and 

 diuretin both may cause glycosuria, and, since the chief charac- 

 teristic of each drug is to cause polyuria, it has been thought 

 that they act primarily upon the kidney, like phlorhizin, but 

 this has not been finally established. Uranium salts are also 

 supposed to cause glycosuria through direct action upon the kid- 

 ney cells. 



1 Underbill and Closson (Amer. Jour. Physiol., 1906 (15), 321) consider the 

 glycosuria due to increased renal permeability, because a hypoglycemia is 

 observed. 



2 Literature given by Abderhalden (loe. ciL). 



