Effects of Cortisone and Adrenocorticotrophic Hormone on Wound Healing in Normal and Scorbutic Guinea Pigs

Abstract

ACTH and cortisone, in doses sufficient to alter the adrenal glands and depress the level of circulating eosinophils, failed to influence the repair of wounds in normal and in scorbutic guinea pigs. It is suggested, therefore, that the connective tissue of the guinea pig may respond to adrenal hormone, if at all, less readily than that of other spp. studied. The specificity of the "anti-scorbutic" action of cortisone and of ACTH is questioned. The adrenal response of scorbutic guinea pigs to ACTH, in the virtual absence of adrenal vitamin C, suggests that ascorbic acid is not essential for the secretion of adrenal hormone. The relationship of ascorbic acid to the metabolism of the adrenal cortex remains obscure.