Concentration of ascorbic acid in human adrenal cortex before and after ACTH administration.

Abstract

Summary1. The mean ascorbic acid content of the adrenal cortex of human cancer patients prior to ACTH treatment was found to be 131 ± 8 mg per 100 g tissue in the male and 139 ± 5 mg % in the female. 2. A 32% depletion in cortical ascorbic acid was found at 2 to 3 hours after intravenous injection of 25 U.S.P. units of ACTH. 3. The dosage of ACTH required to produce this depletion appears to be about 7 to 8 times that required per kg of body weight for the male hypophysectomized rat and the time elapsed between ACTH injection and maximal ascorbic depletion appears to be greater than 3 hours in the human.