EXCRETION OF UREA

There is a perennial thrill about the search for the final explanation of the mechanism of renal function. Of the recognized organs of excretion, the kidney would seem to have received its full share of attention; further study has only served to emphasize its manifold connection with the physiology of the organism. Ordinarily, renal function is considered primarily in relation to the formation of urine, the concentration and removal of metabolic waste products with the maximum conservation of water. A recent study by Van Slyke, Rhoads, Hiller and Alving¹ bears significantly on this point; the relationships between urea excretion, renal blood flow, renal oxygen consumption and diuresis are considered. The investigation differs from previous ones in that it was carried out on experimental animals in which one kidney was explanted² intact directly under the skin, so that simultaneous samples of urine and blood from the renal vein and