Occurrence of a Cardio-active Principle in Spleen

Abstract

THE work of Rein¹ and Pinotti² showed that the liver can release a substance into the circulation which is capable of improving the efficiency of the heart in a manner which could not be explained solely on hæmodynamic grounds. These two authors believed that the liver material acted by improving the energy metabolism of the heart, leading to greater economy of cardiac work. Later work reported by Rein^3,4 indicated that the stimulus for the release of the active liver principle was cardiac hypoxia, which caused release of a material from the spleen into the blood stream. This material was transported to the liver, where it served as stimulus for the release of the active liver principle. Rein's work has shown that the materials involved in the reaction must be of a hormonal nature. In 1952, Green⁵ described an extract from the non-saponifiable components of ox liver which exerted a positive inotropic action on the isolated papillary muscle of the cat. This work has been confirmed here, and an examination has been made of extracts of spleen to determine whether any cardioactive material is present in this organ.