Abstract
The subject of the experiments were rabbits that were fed oats or young carrots. Tartrate was administered to these animals either by mouth or subcutaneously, and the effect of the single dose as well as of repeated doses on renal activity studied by means of phenolsulphonephthalein. The following is a resumé of the results obtained.
1. When tartrate was given by mouth to rabbits on a diet of oats large doses were required to inhibit the elimination of phenolsulphonephthalein. The effects produced with medium doses were very moderate. Recovery was observed in all cases.
2. Even small doses of sodium tartrate injected subcutaneously into rabbits on a diet of oats caused a very pronounced inhibition of the elimination of dye. Considerable improvement occurred after 3 to 5 days, but complete recovery of function was never observed.
3. Evidence of disturbance of the renal function was seldom obtained with much larger doses of sodium tartrate when injected subcutaneously into rabbits on a diet of fresh young carrots. Large doses showed a decrease of functional activity within a few hours after injection, but tests made one or more days later indicated considerable improvement, and in some cases, recovery.
4. After the subcutaneous injection of sodium tartrate into rabbits on a diet of oats the time of appearance of the phenolsulphonephthalein injected was shorter and the duration of the elimination longer than in rabbits which had been receiving carrots.
5. When sodium tartrate was injected subcutaneously in gradually increasing amounts, no impairment of renal function was observed even with very large doses (4 and 6 grams per kilo) if the diet consisted of carrots exclusively, but the efficiency of the kidney was markedly decreased if oats alone were fed, although the amounts of tartrate administered was only one fourth or one sixth of that given to rabbits on a diet of carrots.
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