STUDIES ON THE CONDITIONS OF ACTIVITY IN ENDOCRINE GLANDS

Abstract

Emotional excitement (of a cat in the presence of a barking dog), for 1 min., is quickly followed by a pronounced increase of the red corpuscles of both the central and peripheral blood. In 15 observations of increases below 30% the average increase was 20 %. The increases are far beyond the variations occurring in the usual quiet existence of the animal. The maximal increase is immediately after the minute of excitement; after 5 min. a fall has started and within 1/2 hr. the former state has been restored. If the conditions which usually cause excitement fail to do so, the polycythemia does not occur. Hematocrit and hemoglobin determinations do not show such great increases as does the erythrocyte count; this is explained by a larger percentage of small corpuscles in the blood after excitement. Emotional polycythemia fails to occur after removal of the upper abdominal sympathetic strands and bilateral severance of the splanchnic nerves[long dash]indeed it may be replaced by a lower erythrocyte count. If only the liver among the upper abdominal viscera is left innervated, excitement causes no noteworthy hyperglobulia. After section of the nerves to the spleen, excitement for 1 min. does not produce polycythemia; prolonged excitement with struggle for 10 or 15 min. may occasionally increase the erythrocyte count. The adrenal glands were active. The irregular effect of secreted adrenin and of injected adrenalin are attributed to variable concentration of the blood in the denervated spleen. Inactivation of the adrenal medulla has no marked influence on emotional polycythemia.