EFFECT OF SELENIUM ON UREASE AND ARGINASE

¹ Pharmacologist, Division of Pharmacology, National Institute of Health, U. S. Public Health Service, Washington, D. C.

Selenium in the form of sodium selenite, selenate or diselenodiacetic acid inhibits the activity of urease. The inhibition due to selenite is immediate and increases rapidly with concentration but does not go to completion. The inhibition due to diselenodiacetic acid is progressive and goes to completion at minute concentrations in sufficient time.

Rat liver arginase activity is not affected by the in vitro addition of selenium. The ingestion of selenium as selenite or seleniferous wheat does not decrease the liver arginase concentration and in some instances the arginase content of the livers appears to be increased.

The water content of livers taken from animals ingesting selenium is five to ten per cent greater than in the controls.