The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1905-05-15
EDRENALIN OUT or COAL TAR.
r. H.. AKIN HAS cor n HE'S
BEAgEN ME-, SAYS TAKAhINE.


=, "a, the japanese Chemist Who Isolated
enc Principle Prom the Animal score
tion-OnCe Before Mechanical Prod
uct was Announced, but Mistakenly.
rbore ia one man in New York who L.
Intensely Interested In the report from
IopJon that DR.. Daldn has announced the
discovery OF a mechanical process for
,,,Lip, from coal tar products adrenalin,
,h,t active principle OF the suprarenal
.I.,J. whose isolation has made bloodless
surgery possible, This man IL DR.. Jokichi
Tal,mine. the japanese chemist who showed
,bs world how 20 make adrenalin.
ovsr the kidneys Of men and animals are
two little glands shaped like a cooked hat
and In man, about as big as marbles. Their
f.nltiln was long mystery 20 psychologists.
Even now. it is not thoroughly Understood.
I, has long been known. however. that they
had som, effect on the circulation OF the
bo,d. and that their secretion Is power
nj a.tringent Psychologists and chemists
bacan eyperimenting with this secretion.
I, i,al two European investigators dis
c,vsrpd that il had a strong effect In driving
away blood from living surfaces 10 which
n vas apphed In Its fresh state II was
not Of practical use; what science wanted
vas us active principle. Chemists worked
at for years. and finally, In 1901. Dr. Taxa
mine succeeded
II turned out to be one Of the important
discoveries in surgical chemistry. In the
arst place adrenaln drives away the blood
from any living tissue TO which II is applied.
This makes il especially useful in delicate
surgery. especially OF the nose and throat.
Formerly. an operation In the nasal pas
cages. for example. was followed by rush
OF blood which hid his work from the
operator. Now the surface is treated with
sdrenan. and il can be cut like fresh meat.
Adrenalin is used by Oculists IN relieving
congestion Of the eye Moreover, II il the
most powerful heart stimulant known.
Surgeons inject II into patients dying from
the shock Of operations. II drives the
blood ahead Of it, giving the heart a quick
aoueeze, which viii sometimes start the
engine going after Il has practically stopped.
Adrenaln ia used 10 relieve violent ln1am-
nations and 20 stop hemoIThages OF all
kinds-persistent nose-bleed for example.
IL IL rather a costly drug, however, since
the process Of manufacture from the glands
Of sheep is long and delicate. A cheap
mechanical process Of manufacture would
greatly extend its use.
III DR.. Dakin has really found a meohan-
ioal process for manufacturing adrenalin,
said Dr. Takimine yesterday, i congratu-
ATE him. | do it all the more heartily be-
cause he has beaten me. have been ex-
perimenting with the same thing myself.
However, l want to see the text Of his
paper announcing the discovery before !
believe that he has really achieved Il.
certain chemist announced privately not
very long ago that he had accomplished
this very thing. He found out afterEard,
though, that he had not produced adrenalin
at all but only something very like IL,
No one but an investigating chemist can
understand the difficulty OF making a me
ohanioal equivalent for such an extract
from organic matter. II DIR. Dakin has
succeeded he has done a big thing.
whether or no this process can be used
10 produce adrenalin In commercial guam
titles, Is quite another matter. You know,
perhaps. that chemists began experiment
Ing more than twenty years ago on me-
ohanical means Of producing indigo,
which "a vegetable extract. They got the
compound, but only lately has the process
been brought 70 point where II Is Of com
nerclal use. Even now the mechanical
compound has not seriously damaged
the trade In vegetable indigo. On the other
hand. IL took chemists only few years TO
get practical process for duplicating the
red cooring matter Of madden root once
the only fast red dye.
Since adrenalin was put on the market
we have learned a great deal which helps
TO clear up the mystery Of the suprarenAl
glands. l myself believe that they are
what you might call the governors Of the
heart action and the blood circulation.
Il was going through a gas works the
other day when / thought Of a parallel.
There / saw an appliance no bigger than
a hatrRck which controls absolutely the
gas supply Of the city. Every main, every
branch line, every big tank IS regulated
by switches in that little apparatus.
'ThA suprarenal glands do the same
thing, take Il only their method IA chemical,
not mechanical. BY that fluid, which has
such powerful effect in driving the blood,
they hurry the heart act ion when IL is too
slow, check it down whenit il too fast
That Is a simple. non-technical eXplana-
ton Of the general principle.
i am glad II Dr. Dakin's process should
turn out TO be practical. II is big achieve
ment, In any case