PROTEIN NITROGEN AND NONPROTEIN NITROGEN DETERMINATIONS ON GASTRIC JUICE

Abstract

In an attempt to bring to clinical use the studies reported¹in 1931 on the total nitrogen and nonprotein nitrogen partitions of the gastric juice, more data have been collected. It has been noted that the normal nonprotein nitrogen constituents were usually to be found within certain quantitative limits and that the fasting juice in normal cases was prone to contain more protein and nonprotein nitrogen than the succeeding ones. Furthermore, it was noted that the benign achlorhydria showed, throughout the period of stimulation with histamine, values higher than those of the normal, but low in comparison with those of gastric carcinoma or of nephritis with marked blood elevation of nonprotein nitrogen. The following idea was expressed at that time: "It may be that the stomach was acting as an agent for removing these products of metabolism from the body. Whether they are reabsorbed from the lower intestinal tract,