AN EXTRACT OBTAINED FROM THE EXTERNAL BOVINE PARATHYROID GLANDS CAPABLE OF INDUCING HYPERCALCEMIA IN NORMAL AND THYREOPARATHYROPRIVIC DOGS

Abstract

Vassale (1) in 1905 claimed to have prepared an active parathyroid extract, but failed to describe his process of extraction.There is no available evidence supporting his contentions.Berkeley and Beebe (2) (1909) recovered a nucleoprotein from the bovine parathyroid glands which completely relieved acute parathyroid tetany in dogs.Their process consisted in shaking freshly ground gland tissue at room temperature for 2 hours with 6 to 8 volumes of physiological salt solution to which had been added 2 drops of 10 per cent sodium hydroxide.The resulting product was filtered and preserved with chloroform.This preparation was claimed to be effective orally but better subcutaneously or intraperitoneally.It was, however, not very stable, being readily destroyed by heat and cold and slowly by digestive ferments.Hanson (3) in a series of papers (1923-24) described a parathyroid preparation which he called "hydrochloric S." It was made by boiling fresh parathyroid glands with 0.1 N hydrochloric acid.He succeeded in relieving parathyroid tetany in dogs for varying periods of time.The same author (4) showed recently *that this extract induced a serum calcium increase in thyreoparathyroprivic dogs.Berman (5) reported the preparation of a crystalline substance by means of acid-alcohol extraction of bovine parathyroid glands which possessed the property of inducing hypercalcemia.His report was very brief, and gave nothing in detail.Collip (6), a short time ago, described an active serum calcium-increasing extract of the parathyroids, obtained by boiling 117