The author observed that hypoglycemia is induced following the injection of autonomic blocking agents to normal and especially to alloxan rabbits, and attempted to elucidate the mechanism of hypoglycemic action of these drugs.
In the present series of experiments, the acute effects of these agents (pentolinium tartarate P-T hexamethonium H-M, tetraethylammonium T-A, benzylimidazoline B-I), chlorpromazine, dihydroergotamine DHE and various hormones on the blood sugar curves of normal, alloxan and adrenalectomized fasted rabbits were studied. The analysis of the blood sugar curves for six hours was done.
The author represented the index of the controlling factors for the activity of carbohydrate regulating hormones, with insulin-effects (I-E) and contrainsulin-effects (C-I-E) (elavating or lowering effect of blood sugar over 10% hourly). And the following results were obtained :
(1) In noamal fasting rabbits, after single injection of such autonomic blocking drugs as P-T, T-A and H-M, there occurred moderate hypoglycemia following initial mild hyperglycemia, and in these blood sugar curves the author found that there are such specific factors as initial and final C-I-E with median I-E between them.
(2) The effects of three hormones (insulin, ACTH and cortisone) on the blood sugar curves of normal rabbits were represented with initial I-E, but only adrenalin induced hyperglycemia and expressed initial C-I-E with final I-E.
(3) Alloxan-diabetic rabbits usually responded with severer hypoglycemia than that of normal rabbits following injections of all autonomic nervous blocking drugs and various hormones, and never appeared C-I-E factors in blood glucose curves after these injections except B-1 and ACTH.
(4) In the normal rabbits injected P-T with insulin, ACTH or cortisone, the action of P-T were not appeared both on the blood sugar curves and on the effects of these hormones, however in cases injected P-T with adrenalin, P-T occurred marked effect and there could be seen no more hyperglycemic curve and C-I-E factors.
(5) In adrenalectomized rabbits, in which the levels of the fasting blood sugar are low, hyperglycemic curves were never induced following in jection of P-T, and C-I-E factors were never observed following injection of P-T or ACTH, similarly to normal rabbits injected adrenelin with P-T.
(6) The hypoglycemic action of P-T appeared severer in alloxan-diabetic rabbits with reduced islet function than in normal ones, and in alloxan rabbits no effects were observed on ACTH blood sugar curve by P-T injection, however this agent caused marked effect on adrenalin curve ; the hyperglycemia in these rabbits turned over hypoglycemia and no more C-I-E factors were seen.
From these observations therefore the acute hypoglycemic effect of P-T seemed to be the effect of diminished activity of C-I-E groups of hormone, especially that of adrenal factor.
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