THE EFFECT OF CORTISONE AND ACTH TREATMENT ON CERTAIN CARBOHYDRATE METABOLITES

Abstract

Cortisone and ACTH are considered to have a definite effect on carbohydrate metabolism. This view is chiefly based on experimental investigations. If cortisone is given to normal rats hyperglycemia and glycosuria develop — an observation that can also be made in man. In animals with intact adrenals but with part of the pancreas removed, the administration of cortisone results in an increased glycosuria. The concurrent increase in the excretion of nitrogen and potassium is believed to indicate that cortisone stimulates glyconeogenesis by promoting glucose formation at the expense of the tissue proteins. Recent investigations indicate, however, that glyconeogenesis does not result from the decomposition of body proteins but from blocking of the protein synthesis, the amino-acid radicals being converted to pyruvic acid and glucose.