RENAL EXCRETION OF ACID AND BASE IN THE PIG

¹ Physiology Department, Rowett Research Institute, Bucksburn, Aberdeen, AB2 9SB

Pigs fed a meal diet excreted between 100 and 200 m-equiv/day of acid in the urine and about one-third of this acid was present as titratable acid phosphate and the remainder as ammonium ions.

Acidosis, produced by giving NH₄Cl in the food or infusing HCl intravenously, increased the urinary excretion of acid, and nearly all of this increase appeared as ammonium ions without increased excretion of phosphate.

Acidosis also increased urinary excretion of calcium and sodium but excretion of potassium was not affected. Few changes in faecal mineral excretion occurred during acidosis although sodium excretion was reduced.

Ingestion of sodium bicarbonate increased urine pH and urinary excretion of bicarbonate but reduced the excretion of calcium in urine.

These results suggest that renal control of acid and base excretion in the pig is similar to that in man and the dog.

Note:

The author would like to thank Mr W. Buchan for skilled assistance during these experiments.