408 



Scientific Proceedings (131) 



given with the benzoate to each of these students in subsequent 

 tests. The first showed 90 per cent, and the second 84 per cent. 

 It should be noted that there was an interval of at least a week 

 between any two of these tests on the same individual. The 

 benzoate dosage in each case was approximately 50 milligrams 

 per kilo of body. Lewis and Griffith 5 gave rabbits the enormous 

 dosage of 1 gram of sodium benzoate per kilo of body weight 

 and found that the simultaneous administration of glycine 

 markedly increased the rate of synthesis and elimination of hip- 

 puric acid. This was to have been expected since the dosage 

 which they used was approaching the lethal dose of 1.7 grams 

 per kilo. In previous tests using 2.4 grams of benzoate I had 

 tried the effect of the simultaneous administration of glycine 

 without result in the case of normal human beings, and I was 

 therefore surprised that with the somewhat larger dose of 50 

 milligrams per kilo, but still a relative small dose, to find two 

 persons out of a series of 89 who showed this peculiar condition. 

 This apparent difficulty in certain persons of readily supplying 

 glycine must be taken into account in making benzoate tests: 

 Experiment with normal given benzoate per body surface basis 

 shows administration of glycine increases rate of hippuric acid 

 output in two hours' interval markedly but slightly in three 

 hours interval. It will be necessary to supply sufficient glycine 

 in all tests to rule out the possibility of an occasionally low ben- 

 zoate test being due to this glycine factor. Gelatine can prob- 

 ably be adequately substituted for glycine for this purpose if 

 given in proper amount and a short time before the adminis- 

 tration of the benzoate to allow time for digestion. 



TABLE I. 





Group 1, 



Group 2, 





Group 2 







21 cases 



266 



cases 













Aver. 





Aver. 













H. A. 





H. A. 









Body wt. 



No. of 



% ex- 



No. of 



% ex- 



% ex- 



No. of 



% of 



kilos. 



cases 



creted 



cases 



creted 



cretion 



cases 



total 



41- 50 



1 



100 



1 



96 



80- 85 



6 



9 



51- 60 



5 



91 



16 



91 



86- 90 



20 



30 



61- 70 



11 



90 



26 



96 



91- 95 



22 



33 



71. 80 



3 



83 



21 



91 



96-100 



18 



28 



81- 90 



1 



85 



1 



92 









91-100 



0 





1 



100 









5 Lewis, H. B., and Griffith, W. H., J. Biol. Chem., 1923, lv, 22. 

 Acknowledgment of financial aid in conducting this work is made to 

 the Graduate School of the University of Minnesota. 



