Studies concerning the alimentary absorption of water and tissue hydration in relation to diuresis

Signals from the oropharynx may contribute to the diuresis which occurs in man to drinking isotonic fluids

The drinking of a variety of isotonic salt solutions provoked a short load-dependent diuretic response in man, similar in latency to that of a water diuresis and reaching its maximum 40-60 min from the start of drinking. Subjects differed in the threshold load at which the response became evident, and also in the magnitude of their responses. Changes in free water clearance matched the increases in urinary minute volume, with no significant change in either urinary sodium or potassium excretion. Changes in urinary pH and in ammonium excretion were similar to those described for a water diuresis. Drinking an isotonic solution of mannitol provoked a diuresis similar to that of the salt solutions. All subjects had diarrhoea after drinking the mannitol. Signals arising from the oropharynx might be partly responsible for eliciting the diuresis. The significantly smaller urinary responses to infusions of isotonic salt solutions directly into the stomach support this view. The absence of a significant response to 'sham drinking' appears inconsistent with this, but oropharyngeal signals may only have a priming role in man and interact with other signals to give the full response.

[Investigations in streaming blood of the alert animal and man. II. Investigations on the mechanism of water resorption from the gut into the portal vein blood in the rat (author's transl)]

Arteriovenous differences (AVD) of electrolyte concentration in the gut are followed by continuous conductometry of ultrafiltrates of portal venous and aortic blood. Intraduodenal application of tap water amounting to 0.5, 1,0 or 2,0% body weight lead to extremely variable reactions both in time course and dimension of AVD. Whereas large and fast changes can be described by a single exponential term, small and slow changes show saturation effects. Evidence is presented, that these differences correspond to permeability changes, both for water in the direction: lumen to blood and for electrolytes in the direction: blood to lumen. Thirst has an enhancing effect on AVD. A dual resorptive pathway is proposed to fit the data.

The effect of diuretics on the water excretion of protein deficient rats

Adult rats kept for eleven weeks on a diet deficient in protein lost weight and some developed scrotal oedema. The retention of bromsulphthalein was increased, but the thymol turbidity test was unaffected; the apparent plasma volume was increased.Water diuresis in the protein deficient animals was impaired. There was no apparent delay in the mean rate of water absorption from the whole gastro-intestinal tract although a delayed absorption of water from the intestine was found in some animals. The concentrations of total plasma proteins and plasma albumin were low as compared with normal animals, but the plasma sodium levels were within normal limits. The inulin clearance (glomerular filtration rate) of the animals on the protein-deficient diet was significantly lower than that of the controls.In normal rats, aminophylline and acetazolamide were diuretic. Caffeine and sodium benzoate did not increase the urine output and mersalyl was antidiuretic. In the protein deficient rats, cortisone acetate increased the water diuresis. Caffeine and sodium benzoate, aminophylline and acetazolamide did not significantly increase this response, mersalyl had an antidiuretic effect. Cortisone acetate increased the food and water intake of the protein deficient rats; it also increased the glomerular filtration rate.

The effect of ether and pentobarbitone sodium on gastrointestinal function in the intact rat

The effect of ether and pentobarbitone anaesthesia on gastrointestinal motility and absorption has been studied by measuring simultaneously gastric emptying, small intestinal transit and intestinal absorption of glucose and iodide in intact rats. Both gastric emptying and intestinal transit are very slow under ether anaesthesia, but with pentobarbitone there is no significant delay. The absorption of glucose by the small intestine is significantly impaired by ether but not by pentobarbitone, and a tracer dose of iodide is absorbed normally under both forms of anaesthesia.