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Discusses differences in association of corticosteroids with serum proteins of different animal types. Species difference in the capacity of plasma protein fractions; Use of cortisol and corticosterone and paper electrophoresis methods; Corticosteroid binding by human serum and sheep serum; Protein carrier mechanism for steroid hormones in diverse animal species.

This article deals with the quantitative estimation of plasma corticosteroids by a modified chromatographic technique. The development of quantitative chromatographic methods for the determination of individual adrenal corticosteroids in biological fluids has opened the way for precise investigation of adrenal function in normal and diseased states. In the selection of a suitable method one has to consider the quantity of sample available, the expected number, nature and quantity of the individual steroids, and the extractable impurity. The final choice then depends on the reproducibility, specificity and accuracy of the method.

The electrophoretic behaviour of haemoglobin, carboxyhaemoglobin and alkaline haematin was investigated. When added to the serum of the same and different species characteristic associations with α2 globulin and albumin were observed. Conclusions are drawn with respect to the mechanism of the association of these substances with serum protein constituents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Experimental nephritis has been produced in six dogs by the injection of nephrotoxic rabbit serum, prepared individually for each animal from its own renal cortex. The clinical course and severity of the experimental disease have been correlated with the serum electrophoretic and urinary findings. There was a rise in total globulin, particularly in the α2 and γ fractions following the injection of nephrotoxic serum with a fairly constant A/G ratio. Some months later total serum globulin was low and the A/G ratio was high. It was possible to divide the urinary abnormalities into three stages. Serial histological examination of renal biopsy specimens showed the production of glomerular damage, the essential features of which are described. The glomerular damage was graded so that it was either progressive or underwent gradual resolution and repair. Control animals injected with normal rabbit serum remained clinically well and their renal histology was unaltered. One dog injected with the serum of an animal with progressive renal damage remained well. Features of human glomerulonephritis and the accompanying serum electrophoretic changes have been compared with the changes described in the experimental animals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The electrophoretic mobility of human and dog haemoglobin was found to be the same as the mobility of β globulin of their respective sera. The addition of haemoglobin to either normal or nephritic human serum resulted in a combination of haemoglobin with the α2 globulin and albumin of the serum. The excess haemoglobin remained free and moved with the same mobility as the β globulin of the serum. In normal and nephritic dogs the haemoglobin added to the serum combined only with the α2 globulin fraction. The free excess haemoglobin moved with its own mobility corresponding to the β globulin of dog's serum. In both species the haemoglobin combined with the α2 globulin was localized in the slower moving part of the total α2 globulin area. The combination of haemoglobin with α2 globulin in human and dog serum showed a linear relationship to the α2 globulin level of the serum. This relationship held for both normal and nephritic sera in both species. The reaction of haemoglobin with other serum proteins was not influenced by temperature or time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]