The significance of the supra-renal capsules in the action of certain alkaloids / by H.H. Dale and P.P. Laidlaw.

  • Dale, Henry H. (Henry Hallett), 1875-1968.
Date:
[1912]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: The significance of the supra-renal capsules in the action of certain alkaloids / by H.H. Dale and P.P. Laidlaw. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    show any action of this kind in the case of pilocarpine. We have been content in the case of the uterus, therefore, to show (1) that uterine inhibition is readily produced in the non-pregnant cat by accelerating the output of adrenine from the supra-renal glands: (2) that, in the absence of the supra-renal glands, the hydrastinine group of alkaloids, having no stimulating effect on ganglion-cells, no longer inhibit the nun-pregnant uterus in situ : (3) that blood from the cat’s supra-renal vein after an injection of pilocarpine has a more powerful inhibitor (adrenine) effect on the isolated non-pregnant cat’s uterus than blood obtained from the same source prior to the injection. (1) It has been shown b}^ Asher1 that stimulation of the splanchnic nerves, after removal or exclusion from circulation of all the abdominal viscera except the supra¬ renal capsules, still causes some rise of blood-pressure, which he at¬ tributes to accelerated secretion of adrenine. We hear from Dr E11 i o 11 that he has confirmed and extended this observation. In our experi¬ ment the cat was completely pithed under a volatile anaesthetic, being thereafter kept under artificial respiration. The whole sub-dia¬ phragmatic portion of the alimen¬ tary canal was ligatured off and removed, the liver, though left in situ, being thus removed from cir¬ culation. The splanchnics were dissected in the chest and stimu¬ lated together on one pair of electrodes. A string was attached to both horns of the non-pregnant uterus and led over pulleys to a counter-weighted lever, the hinder part of the animal being then immersed in a bath of warm saline. The lever was pulled down by contraction of the uterus, raised by the counter-weight when the uterus relaxed. Fig. 3 shows the effect of stimulating the splanchnic nerves, with the secondary coil at 12 cm. distance and 2 volts in the primary 1 Zntrlbl.f. Physiol. xxiv. p. 10. 1910; and Ztschr.f. Biol, lviii. p. 274. 1912. Eig. 3. Effect of stimulation of splanchnics on blood-pressure and uterus of non¬ pregnant cat (pithed completely and eviscerated).