6o 



Scientific Proceedings (51). 



compared with 4.8 mm. and 2.9 mm. respectively in the controls. 

 The acceleration of the growth of the primary tumor by cholesterin 

 is not very evident in the metastatic stage (31st to 38th days), but 

 the tendency to form metastases and the rate of metastatic growth 

 are very markedly increased. 



Lecithin, on the contrary, diminishes the tendency to form 

 metastases, retards metastatic growth when it does occur and, 

 in some instances (the "Local" animals) also retards the growth 

 of the primary tumor in the post-metastatic period. 



43 (739) 



Note on the cock's comb test for the activity of ergot. 

 By Albert C. Crawford and James P. Crawford. 



[Laboratory of Pharmacology, Leland Stanford Junior University.] 



The cock's comb test has become a popular method of deter- 

 mining the activity of ergot preparations. It was introduced 

 because gangrene frequently occurred in epidemics of ergot 

 poisoning, and because bluing of the cock's comb was believed to 

 be due to arterial constriction. This view was supported by von 

 Recklinghausen's interpretation of the microscopical examination 

 of the comb in chronic ergot poisoning of cocks. We were im- 

 pressed by the fact that in ergot poisoning often the only patho- 

 logical feature was venous dilatation and we believe that venous 

 dilatation is probably the real cause of the bluing of the comb. 

 It is admitted that the intravenous injection of epinephrin causes 

 a rise in blood pressure, mainly from vaso-constriction and we 

 have found that it will blue the cock's comb, but the bluing only 

 comes on as the blood pressure falls and persists for an hour or two; 

 in other words it occurs at a time when arterial-constriction has 

 subsided. Large doses of paraldehyde given per os, or the inhala- 

 tion of amyl nitrite, will also cause bluing of the comb. 



On subcutaneous injection neither adrenalin nor p. oxyphenyl- 

 ethylamine caused this bluing. Dale claims that much of the 

 activity of ergot preparations is due to p. oxyphenylethylamine. 

 Now while the subcutaneous injection of 25 mg. of p. oxyphenyl- 

 ethylamine caused marked symptoms in cocks, there was no 

 bluing, hence one would argue that the subcutaneous injection 



