Effect of Carbon Tetrachloride on the Serum Amylase of Dogs

Abstract

Following Somogyi's observations of low serum amylase levels in individuals with liver damage, similar changes were observed at the Research and Educational Hospitals in patients coming to autopsy with varying degrees of hepatic insufficiency. This has stimulated an attempt to produce various types of liver injury experimentally in dogs to determine whether or not the changes in the serum amylase parallel changes in the liver closely enough to justify its use as an index of liver function. The normal values for serum amylase in dogs are remarkably higher than those seen in humans. The normal readings obtained in these experiments ranged between 1900 and 3600, expressed as milligrams of sugar per 100 cc of serum. Each dog apparently has his own level of normal variations. In the determination of the serum amylase, 5 cc of 1.5% starch paste was added to 2 cc of 1 % sodium chloride solution and 1 cc of 1 to 10 diluted fresh blood serum and incubated at 39° C for 30 minutes. At the end of this time, the diastatic activity is ended by the addition of 1 cc of 5% copper sulfate solution. The proteins are precipitated by the Somogyi copper method. The sugar of the fitrate is determined by the quantitative method of Benedict. The control on the starch alone and the normal blood sugar are deducted, and the diastatic activity is expressed as the amount of reducing sugar in terms of milligrams of dextrose produced by 100 cc of blood serum under the conditions mentioned. After the normal range for each dog had been determined, they were given varying amounts of carbon tetrachloride by gavage. The same general house diet has been used throughout.