On Digestive Proteolysis: Being the Cartwright Lectures for 1894Chittenden, R. H. (Russell Henry)
Science
On Digestive Proteolysis: Being the Cartwright Lectures for 1894
Chittenden, R. H. (Russell Henry)
Digestion; Digestive enzymes; Enzymes
This indicates the general tenor of Pohl’s results, which have been
taken, by some physiologists at least, as confirmatory of Hofmeister’s
views; the interpretation naturally being that digestive proteolysis
in the alimentary tract is accompanied by a rapid production of new
leucocytes in the lymph-spaces surrounding the intestine, and followed
by a rapid transference of the corpuscles from their point of origin
to the circulating blood, from which they gradually disappear as
their material is made use of in the different parts of the body. In
harmony with this view, Pohl finds that there is a much larger number
of leucocytes in the blood and lymph flowing from the intestine of
an animal in full digestion, than in the arterial blood coming to
the intestinal tract. Further, when due consideration is given to
all the circumstances attending the circulation of the blood through
the abdominal organs, in connection with the great increase in the
number of leucocytes during digestive proteolysis, it seems not
unreasonable to suppose that some proteid matter might be transferred
from the intestine to the blood during the digestive period of six
or eight hours. Moreover, if Pohl’s views are correct, we see that
a portion, at least, of the proteid food-product may be transformed
into organized material in the body of the lymph-cell prior to its
passage into the blood, thus harmonizing with the statement already
made regarding the utter lack of proteoses and peptones in the blood
and lymph. This obviously means an upbuilding of the ordinary products
of digestive proteolysis into the living protoplasm of the leucocytes
in the intestinal walls, implying, however, that the transformation
is accomplished solely by the leucocytes themselves, and not by the
epithelial cells of the intestine.
I have given this brief summary of Pohl’s work because it is so closely
in harmony with the original views of Hofmeister, and because it
offers an easy explanation of one possible way in which some of the
products of digestion might perhaps pass from the intestine into the
blood. I am inclined to believe, however, that the so-called digestive
leucocytosis, which unquestionably does exist, is not a direct result
of digestive proteolysis in general, but rather an indirect result,
coming from the stimulating action of the nuclein, contained especially
in animal cells. Thus, it is a significant fact, as Pohl himself
reports, that wheat-bread, with its fairly large amount of proteid
matter, and which is fully capable of nourishing the animal body, fails
to exert any influence on the number of leucocytes in the blood. Yet we
know that the gluten and other proteids of wheat-flour are converted
by digestive proteolysis into proteoses and peptones, with the same
general properties as like products of animal origin.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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