THE INFLUENCE OF LOW CONCENTRATIONS OF COCAINE ON THE METABOLISM OF PHENOL

¹ From the Department of Pharmacology, Cornell University Medical College, New York

1. The effect of slow cocaine infusion on the phenol metabolism of living cats was studied by determination of the free and conjugated phenol content of the blood and the corresponding urine samples.

2. A single large injection of phenol results in an increase in the free and conjugated phenol in the blood and urine lasting a few hours.

3. A continuous infusion of phenol produces a gradual rise of the free and conjugated phenol in the blood and urine. As the infusion is continued, the excretion rate reaches a maximum and the conjugated phenol content of the blood rises suddenly.

4. Infusion of cocaine in a phenol infused cat inhibits the process of conjugation resulting in a decrease of the conjugated phenol content of blood and urine.

5. These results indicate that cocaine, even in low concentrations, inhibits the enzymatic processes involved in the conjugation of phenol in the living animal. They also lend an indirect support to the theory of Richter that epinephrine may be inactivated partly by esterification of the phenol ring.