The physiological action of choline and neurine / F.W. Mott.

  • Frederick Walker Mott
Date:
1899
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Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: The physiological action of choline and neurine / F.W. Mott. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by The University of Glasgow Library. The original may be consulted at The University of Glasgow Library.

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    injection of choline, we believe that the active principle in these extracts of brain was choline. Leon Asher* found that the intravenous injection of choline in dogs (3 to 5 cub. centims. of a 5 per cent, solution) causes an increased flow of lymph, but no increase in its concentration ; there was no increase in the flow of bile. Asher also states that he has undertaken, in conjunction with Wood, an investigation of the action of choline on the circulatory system, but that this is reserved for a later paper, not yet published, t Previous Work on the Injection of Cerebro-spinal Fluid. We can find no previous record of work on this subject. One of us (F. W. M.), however, previous to the commencement of our joint work, had injected normal cerebro-spinal fluid obtained from one animal into the circulation of another animal, with entirely negative results ; and Professor Schafer tells us that he also has made injections of human cerebro-spinal fluid obtained from cases of meningocele, and he also has only obtained negative results. In the course of our investigations we have confirmed this ; we obtained specimens of human cerebro-spinal fluid from a man who died of cerebral haemorrhage, from cases of meningocele and of hydrocephalus, and a case (under Dr. StClair Thomson’s charge) in which cerebro-spinal fluid dripped from the nostril, j We also used other serous effusions (hydrocele fluid, pleural effusion, ascitic effusion) ; but in all these cases injection of the fluid itself, or of a solution in physiological saline solution of an alcoholic extract of the fluid, produced entirely negative results on blood-pressure, heart and respiration. We may at this point also mention that a saline solution of the alcoholic extract of normal blood (from man, dog and sheep) produces a similar negative result. This is important in view of our results presently to be described with the blood of General Paralytics. 2. Chemical Examination of the Cerebro-spinal Fluid. Normal cerebro-spinal fluid is alkaline to litmus and contains a very small percentage of solids. In Dr. StClair Thomson’s case just mentioned, the solids comprised less than 1 per cent, of the total; in cases of meningocele, and still more in the case of hydrocephalus, the percentage is somewhat higher; but if tapping is frequently performed the fluid which accumulates becomes richer in solid, particularly in proteid constituents, and the fluid may ultimately differ but little from that of ordinary serous effusions. § * ‘ Zeitsch. f. Biol.,’ 1898, vol. 37, pp. 261-306. t See supplementary note B at the end of this paper. t StClair Thomson, L. Hill and W. D. Halliburton, ‘ Proc. Roy. Soc.,’ Feb., 1899 (vol. 64, p. 343). § W. D. Halliburton, ‘ Journal of Physiology,’ 1889, vol. 10, p. 232. References to the writings of previous workers on the subject are given in this paper. VOL. CXCI.—B. 2 F
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