The influence of a meat diet on the kidneys. 203 



111 four animals which were fed on an exdusive ox-flesh diet 

 for nine months, the diet being commenced when the animals were 

 about three months old, the result was different from those of the 

 preceding observations. All four animals in this series thrived on 

 the diet and gained in weight more than the controls. Their general 

 appearance was that of good health except that they were inordina- 

 tely fat. One died suddenly after 4^/., months of the diet, the remain- 

 ing three were killed after 9^2 months of special feeding. The 

 kidneys of all four were large and varied in weight from 2,8 to 3,7 

 grammes: the average percentage weight being 1,06 grammes, which 

 may be regarded as normal. It has to be noticed therefore that in 

 this group the results of the examination of the kidneys are not in 

 conformity with those jdelded by the large majority of the experi- 

 ments here recorded. But it is to be remembered that these animals 

 had put on an unusual amount of fat. 



Histological Report. 

 By Ct. Lyon. 



I. In the flrst series of observations on seven adult rats fed on 

 a horse-flesh diet for five months, the kidneys show very striking 

 histological changes, when compared with the kidneys of the control 

 animals fed on porridge (7) and on bread and milk (6). ^hese patho- 

 logical changes conform in type to what is seen in the kidney in 

 general toxic conditions e. g. septicaemia, diphtheria, acute lobar 

 pneumonia etc., the chief incidence of the affection being on the cells 

 of the secreting tubules. While the kidne^^s of this series show uni- 

 formity as regards the type of lesion (catarrhal nephritis) they show 

 variations in degree. The majority of the kidneys of this series are 

 examples of a severe type with bacteria present in large numbers. 



In the less affected cases, the earliest changes are always found 

 in the ascending limb of Henle's loop, which appears to be the most 

 vulnerable of the secreting tubules. It is noteworthy that in sections 

 where the cells of the convoluted tubules in the cortex may show 

 little change beyond swelling and increased granularity of their 

 cytoplasm accompanied by karyolytic changes, the cells of the ascend- 



