The urinary 17-ketosteroid content, 17-ketosteroid fractionation, 17-hydroxycorticosteroid content and uropepsin excretion of 13 normal female and 16 normal male adult rabbits weighing 2000-3500g. were measured. Similar measurements were also made with 5 female and 6 male rabbits (from 50 to 360 days after birth). The results were as follows :
A) Urinary 17-ketosteroids.
Neutral crude extracts were prepared from urine by Drekter's method, the non-ketonic fractions therein were removed by Pincus's micro-Girard method, then colorimetry was used in general compliance with Pearson's method, with a Hitachi EPU-2 spectrophotometer.
1) The mean urinary 17-ketosteroid value of normal adult rabbits was 2.25+0.14 mg/48 hours (1.96-2.47 mg/48 hours) in female rabbits and 2.41 ± 0.20 mg/48 hours (1.99-2.86 mg/48 hours) in male rabbits.
2) No correlation between the quantity of urine and its 17-ketosteroid content was observable.
3) The urinary 17-ketosteroid content was always higher in male than in female normal rabbits and rose stepwise in both with the number of days after birth, reacting the adult mean value 120 days after birth.
B) 17-Ketosteroid fractionation.
The urinary 17-ketosteroids were fracionated by adsorption chromatography on alumina into eight fractions, the method used being the microscale liquid column partition chromatography of Edwards.
1) Percentage of each fraction was as follows :
β-17-Ketosteroids (Fractions II and III) were 24% in normal female adults and 18% in normal male adult. Fractions IV + V were 33% in female adults and 48% in male adults. The 11-oxy-17-keto-steroids (fractions VI and VII) were 26% in females, 22% in male adult rabbits.
2) There was a constant difference in the 17-ketosteroid pattern between the two sexes. Fractions IV + V were always in male than in female normal rabbits.
C) 17-Hydroxycorticosteroids.
The butanol extracts were prepared by Smith's modification of Reddy's method, and their Porter-Silber's colorimetric reaction was analysed using a Hitachi EPU-2 spectrophotometer.
1) The mean urinary 17-hydroxycorticosteroid value of normal adult rabbits was 580.9± 100.6γ/48 hours (398-720γ/48 hours) in female rabbits and at 640.6±60.2γ/48 hours (555-830γ/48 hours) in male rabbits.
2) No correlation between the quantity of urine and its 17-hydrocycorticosteroid content was observable.
3) The urinary 17-hydroxycorticosteroid content was always higher in male than in female normal rabbits and rose stepwise in both with the number of days after birth, reaching the adult mean value 120-130 days after birth.
D) Uropepsin.
The milk coagulation activity of uropepsin was examined by a modification of West's method and the proteolytic activity by Gray's or Hirshowitz's modified hemoglobin method.
1) The mean uropepsin value of normal adult rabbits was 1.92 +0.23 mg/48 hours (0.76-3.36 mg/48 hours) by the modified West method or 201 ± 76.4 unit/48 hours (98-350 unit/48 hours) by the hemoglobin method in female rabbits and 1.82±0.11 mg/48 hours (0.82-3.12 mg/48 hours) by the modified West method or 199 ±79.6 unit/48 hours (96-326 unit/48 hours) by the hemoglobin method in male rabbits.
2) No correlation between the quantity of urine and its uropepsin content was observable.
3) There was no difference between the sexes.
4) Uropepsin excretion rose stepwise in both sexes with the number of days after birth, reaching the adult highest value 120-130 days after birth and then gradually decreased.
For the past several years Prof. Okamoto and his coworkers have been investigating the influence of diabetes on the offspring of rabbits and Wistar strain rats. The offspring of diabetic animals treated continuously with alloxan in every generation showed marked regular disorders in the development of the β-cells of pancreatic islets.

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The results of tests for the function of the thyroid gland in patients with hyperfunction of the gland show normal values after administration of antithyroid remedies followed by subtotal thyroidectomy and their symptoms have alleviated.
Yet, within several months after the operation, 36% of such cases begin to show hypothyroidism. Thus, the test results at the time of retiring from the hospital may be said to be not always definitive enough in indicating the true state of the thyroideal function.
So, the author carried out TSH-tests before and after thyroidectomy, for studyring more closely the thyroideal function of the patients.
The Results obtained were in summary as follows :
1. The results of TSH-test at hospitalization were always positive and even supernormally strongly positive, except in severe cases of hyperthyroidism.
2. At dehospitalization, the results of the other tests for the thyroid function show values within the normal range, but the results of TSH-test were negative in nearly half of my cases.
Therefore it may be concluded that the function of the thyroid gland of patients treated for hyperthyroidism seemingly recover normally by the time of their dehospitalization but in reality show great deficiency in reserve, so that when the ex-patient enters upon business or labor, a relative hypothyroidism becomes manifest.

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Change in the secretion of thyroid hormones was investigated from the viewpoint of functional relationship of the hypothalamo-hypophysio-thyroidal axis. Further, studies were made on the “feedback” relation between thyroid hormones and TRF, which was discovered by Shibusawa Department of Surgery.
1. When TSH and TRF were intramuscularly injected into dogs, PBI and PBI"' in thyroidal and peripheral venous blood attained the maximum level about 60 minutes after the injection.
2. After the intramuscular injection of TSH and TRF into dogs, concentrations of PBI, T₃, and T₄ in thyroidal and peripheral venous blood showed remarkable rise at one hour after the injection. The same procedure on human adult males produced perfectly the same results.
3. After destruction of various parts of the hypothalamus, concentrations of PBI, T₃, and T₄ in thyroidal and peripheral venous blood were determined. These values showed remarkable decrease only when lesion was placed in the anterior hypothalamus. Lesions in the medial and posterior hypothalamus did not produce any noticeable change.
4. After destruction of various parts of the hypothalamus, TRF was injected, and change in the above mentioned values was pursued. At 1 hour after the injection, significant increase was observed in all the cases. It was thus known that stimulatory action of TRF was remarkable even when thyroidal function was seriously depressed by the destruction of the anterior hypothalamus.
5. The hypophysio-thyroidal axis is considered to be controlled by the anterior hypothalamus through TRF.

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The first report dealt with the action of TRF, a neurohumor which activates the hypophysio-thyroidal axis. It is reported in this paper that TRF from the hypothalamus has a definite relation with blood concentration of thyroid hormone, and enhance the release of TSH.
1. T₃ and T₄ were locally injected into various areas of the hypothalamus of the dog, and it was found that only the injection into the anserior hypothalamus inhibited thyroidal function. When T₄ was injected into this area, concentrations of PBI, T₃ and T₄ in thyroidal and peripheral venous blood began to fall abruptly from 2 hours after the injection. In the case of T₃ injection, these values began to fall from 2 hours, and showed abrupt fall at 3 hours. Peripheral venous TRF level showed abrupt fall at 3 hours only when either T₃ or T₄ was injected into the anterior hypothalamus.
2. Local injection of T₃ and T₄ into the anterior lobe of the hypophysis produced the same results as that into the anterior hypothalamus.
3. Hypophysectomy decreased PBI, T₃, and T₄ in thyroidal and peripheral venous blood.
4. When T₃ and T₄ were respectively injected into various parts of the hypothalamus of the hypophysectomized dog, no change was observed in the concentrations of PBI, T₃, and T₄ in thyroidal and peripheral venous blood.
5. T₃ and T₄ are considered to be related with TRF in feed-back type at the level of the hypothalamus to control the release of TSH.

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It is a well known fact that when I¹³¹-labelled thyroxine and I¹³¹-labelled triiodothyronine are exogenously given, they are concentrated especially highly in the anterior hypothalamus, median eminence, and neurohypophysis. The author investigated the concentrations of T₃ and T₄, in the hypothalamus and hypophysis using I¹³¹-labelled thyroxine and non-labelled thyroxine and triiodothyronine.
1. Thyroxine and triiodothyronine were intramuscularly injected, and concentrations of T₃ and T₄ in the hypothalamus and hypophysis were determined. The injection of T₃ increased the concentrations of T₄ in the anteriohr hypothalamus, and that of T₃ in the hypophysis. The injection of T₄ increased concentration of T₃ and T₄ in both the hypothalamus and the hypophysis, at the same time inhibiting the release of TRF.
2. The distribution of I¹³¹-labelled thyroxine in the hypophysis was investigated with rats in which various functional states of the thyroid were experimentally produced. In the hyperfunctional state, elevated concentration of I¹³¹-T₄ in the median eminence and neurohypophysis could not be observed, while in the hypofunctional state, it was increased. The same tendency was confirmed also by radio-autograph.
3. It is therefore considered that T₃ and T₄ would be related with TRF in feed-back type at the level of the hypothalamus to control the release of TSH.

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