THE EFFECT OF ADRENAL CORTICAL HORMONES ON THE ANAEROBIC GLYCOLYSIS AND HEXOKINASE ACTIVITY1

Abstract

The relation between the adrenal cortical hormones and carbohydrate metabolism has been known for a long time (see Britton)s review, 1930). The low blood sugar levels in patients with Addison)s disease, discovered by Porges (1909), were also observed in adrenalectomized animals (Artundo, 1927), where there was found a decreased liver glycogen (Houssay and Artundo, 1929, Cori and Cori, 1929). Moreover, the level of glycosuria in partially depancreatized rats decreased after adrenalectomy (Long et al., 1940). A demonstration that these effects were due to the action of adrenal hormones was given later. Ingle (1941) produced glycosuria in force-fed normal rats by the administration of cortisone, corticosterone, and 17-hydroxycorticosterone; and Lazarow and Berman (1950) with cortisone acetate. Increased deposition of glycogen in the liver by the administration of cortical hormones was also observed (Grattan and Jensen, 1940; Long, 1942). In muscle, however, glycogen deposition was not affected (Cori and Cori, 1929; Verzar, 1952).