Evening star., 1938-09-13
ENDOCR|NOL0GY'S1
HGA|NS DESCRIBED
"a Million Combinations of
Hormones Possible, Goiter
ParIey Told.

olICy IUIus
With each combination like a new
hand dealt in a card game, there are
approximately $4,000, 900 possible COM
binations of the IS known hormones
circulating in the human blood stream,
DR.. r. q. Hoskins of Harvard Univer-
sity Medical School told the Third In
ternational Goitre Conference meeting
at the Mayflower Hotel today.
Each hormone is an extremely potent
chemical substance. which produces
astounding physiological results in very
minute amounts. Each, DR.. Hoskins
stressed, probably influences others in
chainlike reactions.
The conference Is primarily con-
cerned with the hormone secreted by
the thyroid gland in the neck, the
regulator OF the speed of living, but,
DR.. Hoskins pointed out, it cannot be
considered by itself alone It is pro-
foundly influenced by secretion from
the pituitary gland in the brain.
Have Contrary Effect.
Speaking on the recent progress of
endocrinology, DR.. Hoskins said there
is increasing evidence of two still un-
known substances secreted by the
adrenal glands which act as contrary
sex hormones. One, for which there
has been evidence for some years, has
profoundly mascularizing effect. The
other. suspected from only six cases
Which have appeared to date in med
lcal literature, has an equally pro-
found femlnizing effect on men, which
can be cleared up in few weeks with
administration Of normal adrenal ex-
tract.
There also is increasing evidence.
he said, that prolactin, the milk pro-
ouclng hormone discovered few years
ago by DR.. Oscar Riddle of the Car
negle Institution Of Washington. acts
also to inhibit some of the sex func-
tions of women while they are nursing
children.
by the chain reaction of hormones
he presented an explanation of the
apparent failure to date of the newly
isolated male sex hormones to pro-
duce lasting effects which would make
them altogether effective. Better re-
SUITS can be hoped for, he suggested
by perfecting combination glandular
treatment OF sex, anterior pituitary
and thyroid hormones "A known
slandular chain, each member of
which acts upon the other.
Warning to Physicians,
While advocating multi-plandular
treatments, DR.. Hoskins warned the
physicians against shotgun therapy"
IN This Held, with the administration
OF mixture of lot of hormones in
the hope that some one of them would
happen to hit the mark.
further data on a new pitujtarv
gland hormone, first described last
month, was presented by DR.. ]. B.
Colllp OF McGill University. Montreal
This promises to be one of the most
significant findings in the whole hor-
none complex of the human body.
1ts most significant primary func-
ton seems to be that of increasing an
animals oxygen consumption. This
hitherto has been considered a func-
ton OF the thyroid gland, possibly
spurred to action by some pituitary
secretion. DR.. Collip and his fellow
workers found, however, that the re-
suits were precisely the same when
the new pituitary substance, not yet
isolated in pure form. was injected
into animals fro,,, u,Lo,, ~. .L,x..J
had been removed.
Secondarily, it has a sensational
effect on the level of blood sugar. in
combination with other hormones.
1nsulln. the secretion of the pancreas.
has sensational effect when used
alone IN reducing the amount of sugar
in the blood because of which it is the
standard remedy for diabetes. The
new hormone almost completely neu-
tralizes its action, when the insulin is
not given in very large amounts. On
the other hand, adrenalin, secreted
by the adrenal glands and perhaps the
most powerful hormone known, always
acts to raise the level of blood sugar.
But. when given together with the
new hormone there is no change.
Role Still Obscure.
While the part played by the new
hormone in the body economy is still
obscure, there is reason to believe, it
was pointed out, that it diverts oxygen
from the burning of sugar, the basic
process in living, to the burning of
stored fat. If this is true it probably
will account for the Information of
animals.
The progress of the long fight against
goitre in endemic goitre regions of the
United States by encouraging the COM
bination of iodine with table salt was
described by DR.. O. P. Kimball of the
Cleveland Clinic. This is now the gen.
orally established custom, he said, but
saAt manufacturing companies still
must be watched to see that they sell
what they actually advertise.
striking example of the effect, he
said, is afforded by the copper-mining
town Of Calumet, Mich. When the
mines closed down in 1888 approxi-
mately IS per cent of the homes went
on relief The relief authorities sup
piled them with untreated salt. Within
a year goltre among the children had
increased TO about one case in every
three, whereas hitherto it had been
practically non-existent.
An extra expenditure of 3 cents per
year per child would have prevented
this, he said.