On the modifications of the metabolism produced by the administration of diphtheria toxine / by D. Noel Paton ... [and others].

Date:
[1899]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: On the modifications of the metabolism produced by the administration of diphtheria toxine / by D. Noel Paton ... [and others]. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh. The original may be consulted at the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh.

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    The excretion of uric acid is not manifestly modified. The excretion of sulphuric acid is not increased proportionately to the increased excretion of nitrogen. The total excretion of sulphur bears a fairly direct proportion to the excretion of nitrogen. The neutral sulphur—sulphur not as sulphates—is increased, probably by an interference with its oxidation to sulphuric acid. The absence of an increase in the formation of sulphuric acid probably explains the absence of an increased formation of ammonia. The diminished elaboration of sulphur into sulphuric acid appears to be connected with the diminished elaboration of nitrogen into urea. Both are probably due to an interference with the hepatic function similar to that already demonstrated to occur in febrile conditions in the manufacture of the bile constituents. The excretion of phosphorus is not increased but is lower in fasting with fever than in fasting alone. The proportion of phosphoric acid to nitrogen is markedly dimi- nished. This would seem to indicate the absence of any increase in the katabolism of nucleins as compared with other proteids. The absence of any relationship between the phosphoric acid and the nitrogen not as urea seems to militate against the view that the purin bases which contain part of that nitrogen are necessarily derived from nucleins. There is no marked alteration in the proportion of potassium and sodium such as was observed by Salkowski in febrile conditions in man. This may possibly be explained by the different distribution of the two bases in the red blood corpuscles of man and of the dog. The excretion of chlorine is markedly diminished actually, in proportion to the excretion of nitrogen, and most markedly in pro- portion to the excretion of sodium and potassium. This alteration in the proportionate excretion of chlorine and of these bases raises the question of what is the nature of the chlorine compounds of the tissues and suggests that in the body chloride of sodium may be split up elsewhere than in the gastric mucosa. The question of what acid takes the place of hydrochloric acid in combining with the bases in the urine is not elucidated. [Towards the expenses of this research a grant was made on the recommendation of the Scientific Grants Committee of the British Medical Association.]
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