MEDICAL - PHYSIOLOGY

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP80-00809A000600240879-0
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: C
• Document Page Count: 4
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: July 6, 2011
• Sequence Number: 879
• Publication Date: August 11, 1949
• Content Type: REPORT

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CLASSIFICi . )N coNFIDErIriAi, him
CENTRAL INTELLIGEI 1 't
r`y
INFORMATION
FOREIGN DOCUMENTS OR RADIO BROADCASTS
COUNTRY UssR
SUBJECT Medical - Physiology
HOW
PUBLISHED Monthly periodical
WHERE
r'UBLISH,-D Moscow
DATE
PUBLISHED Jan 1948
LANGUAGE Russian
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SOURCE
DATE OF
INFORMATION
DATE DIST. // Aug 1949
NO. OF PAGES
SUPPLEMENT TO
REPORT NO.
THIS IS UNEVALUATED INFORMATION
FlaloloBioheekiy Zhurnal S83R, Vol m14, To 1, 1948, (FIB Per Abe
!Bead on 23 November 1946 at the session of the Leningrad Society
,if Physiologists, Biochemists and Fharmaoologiste dedicated to the
100th anniversary of surgical anesthesia).
N. T. Iazarev, Ye. I. Lyublina, and R. Ta. Madorekaya
Tortoology lab, Leningrad Sol Rea Inst of
Labor Hygtdne and Oooupetioual Diseases
Submitted 5 Jan 1947
Data on the narcotic action of the so-called "physiologically inactive" sues,
nitrogen, methane and the heavier rare gases, was published by N. V. lezarev as
far back as 1941. It was proven that these gaees ve.e only slightly soluble in
water and, obviously, the amount of these gases in orge:nta t:esues is so eD! ll
that tley can produce narcosis only in a ootlpreseion chamber at preseurur of
shout ten atmoephared. In the case of 1-elium and also, evidently, hydrogen (see
Iazarev, 1943), a pressure of over a hundred atmospheres Is required to produce
narcosis.
The discovery of the narcotic properties of inert gases belonging to the
zero group of the periodic table is of particular interest from the theoretical
aspect. In view of toe onmpiete chemical inertness of these gases, their narcotic
property is a_convincing argument in favor of the idea, still held in doubt by
voice (Oswald 1924; bochaann, 1936), that the mechanism of the narootio effect to
unrelated to any purely chemical riactiou between the narcotic and the living
substrata.
The strength of the narcotic action of the rare gases inoreases with their
atomic (molecular) wei*t. Although complete narcosis of an adult white mouse
was not obaervcd with a helium pressure of alnost 100 atmospheres, still under
theme conditions a slight narcotic action was clearly indicated by various
symptoms. Argon however, caused narcosis in an adult mouse at a partial pressure
of about 16 - 18 atmospheres; and in a youag mouse weighing about 5 as, at 11
atunoepheres. With k Ipton, narcocis was observed In tte, same moues at a partial
pressure of 34 atao....ierso.
- 1 - OHM
FNT
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DISrR18UTION
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crease in solubility, the effect of xenon should be almost twice that of krypton.
And if the true strength of the narcotic action, determined by the narcotic con-
centration in water, increases in the same manner as from helium to krypton, then
xenon should induce narcosis at a 'artial pressure less than one atmosphere. In,
other words, it can be assumed that. the ordinary air or the atmosphere contains
a high narcotic dilution strong enough for use in inducing narcosis even at
of. this hypothesis or, to be precise, a xenon-krypton mixture, containing 88
percent xenon and 12 percent krypton. However, the last war denied as the
compression chamber previously described (Iazarev, 1941). The pressure was
created b the movement of a piston. As in the other experiments with inert
gases previously described, the pressure chamber was "washed through" with
oxygen before the start of the actual tout. This operation served two purposes:
W) the creation of a certain "reserve" of oxygen necessary for respiration of
the animal during the test; and (2) it enabled one to consider, when analysing
after absorption of the oxygen and carbon dioxide was composed of the inert has
used In the test (since nitrogen was almost completely removed from the chamber
and even eliminated from the body of the animal when the chamber was "washed
through" with oxygen).
W. shall take the data of one such test as an example. (In general, all
the tests gave similar results.) When 'washing through" with oxygen had been
completed, the (young) mouse quickly and energetically renamed its normal
posture when the chamber was inverted. The t:mo taken to add the xenon was 2
minutes. One minute later, the mouse did no, react at all to the inversion of
the chamber, being evidently in a state of complete narcosis. Twelve minutes
after the introduction of xenon a sample was taken from the chamber. Analysis
showed that the gaseous mixture contained 48.5 percent of xenon at a general
absolute pressure of one atmosphere. (More accurately, a xenon-krypton mixture
of the above composition. This reservation should be borne in mind in all cases
where xenon content is given.) After another 2 minutes the animal was removed
from the chamber. It was found (as was to be expected, considering the small
coefficient of solubility of xenon in water and, consequently, ths. greater speed
of saturation and lesaturation of organs with a good blood supply. inol;tiding the
central nervous system) that xenon narcosis not only comes on rapidly but also
pauses off rapidly. One minute after the mouse had been removed from the
atmosphere containing the narcotic it turned over on his stomach and after 3
aiaatee it wad crawling, although unsteadily.
It is of _ntereut to see how xenon affects an adult white mouse. The
small amount of gas at our disposal made such tests very difficult. The pressure
chamber which we*.ve a using for the experiments with young mice was coo small for
adult mice. After numerous attempts we adopted the follnwing prooei'.re.
The chamber used was a small glass with four branches, ordinarily employed
to experiments with isolated sections of smooth-muscled organs (using A. P.
aravkov'e method). The bottom of the glass and one branch pipe were flooded
with paraffin so as to decrease its volume. On top, the glass was hermettealiy
sealed by means of a rubber stopper which filled wall below the riu.. A thred-
way cook was connected to one of the branches and a disci-shaped rubber ballon to
the second. This ball n collapsed readily at the least negative pressure. Its
volume was 70 cc and it served as a compensator, maintaining atmospheric pressure
in the chamber. The remaining branch was c. nnoted to a small 20-0o rubber
balloon (pyriform) via a glass tube filled with pieces of caustic soda. The branch
to which the compensator was connected was also filled with solid potassium alkali.
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set in motion and freed of carbon dioxide by alternate compression and deflation
of tan balloon.
pensator and small balloon (with the three=way cook "to air") and subsequent
suction of the oxygen (with the cock turned "to oxygen"). This process was
This test was carried out on t mouse weighing 15 gm under the following
conditions. One minute after the xenon had been introduced, a ample taken
from the chamber contained ?7.4 percent of this gas (carbon dioxide 0 percent).
After 5 minutes when the chamber was inverted, we clearly observed that the
only for this purpose. By this taws the hindlegs were quite paralyzed. The
animal pea shuddering all over, and this became more and more violent. Nine
was taken: it was found to contain 75 percent xenon and absolutely no carbon
cioxide. One minute later, when the chamber war inverted, the animal failed
to resume its normal position completely.
It can be seen from this data that xenon also exercises a distinct nar-.
cotic action on an adult mouse although there was no complete narcosis, even
at a partial pressure of this gas of 3/4 atmosphere. `tentatively, it may be
considered in this experiment that xenon must ha'e had a partial pressure hot.
greater than one atmosphere.
We did not observe the process of restoration of functions in the adult
mouse after it was removed from the narcotic atmosphere. The xenon was die-
placed from the chamber by voter, thereoy drowning the mouse, in order to col-
lect the gas in other etperimsnte after removal of oxygen and CO2.
It may also be mentioned briefly that we also tested the action of xenon
on insects (cockroaches). Due to the fact that only a email amor.at of xenon
was at our disposal, we were able t. prodaoe only a partial pressure of 3.1
..atmospheres (with a total pressure of 4.4 atmospheres). Under these oon-
ditione the eookroazhee oontinadd to move but lost their b3lanoe easily and
rolled to the bottom of the chamber, where they lay for most of u;ho time. At
lower partial pressures of xenon (abc?ut 2 - 2.5 atmosphe,:os) it was observed
that the insects were stimulated urid moved about the chamber such more seer-
getiaally than before the 3xperiment. On the other hand, at a still lower
partial pressure of the gas (about 0.7 - 1 - 1.5 atmospheres) he cockroaches
indicated a unique torpor. They stood eosplecely motiodlesa in th.e pose they
bad aeeuaed. "Like a statue" is the phrase used in our records.
Thus, the prediction we made some years ago, that xenon as normally found
in air is a etroog narcotic and can exercise its narcotic action even at normal
barometric pressure, is fully justified. The narcotic action of xenon is several
times stronger than that of krypton.
The experiments published previously (lazarev, 1941) sometimes evoked a
certain skepticism. It wss suggested that the paralysis of animals observed,
although outwardly similar to narcosis, was in reality due to the purely meehaeieal
effect of high pressure. It is tore that even then it was possible to develop a
fairly strong case against an objection of this kind:
1. Paralysis of the animals is observed at oomplet'.ly different total
pressures when the barocemera to tilled with various gaseous mixtures.
2. It is possible, knowing the solubility coefficients of various "pbveio-
logically inert" gases In water and therefore, approximately, in blood and tissue
fluid, to calculate what should be the content of thf.s or that inert sae in an
animal organism a.:ile in the chamber at the pressure at which paralysis of the
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wiimal to obeaaved. The result of calculation to that thin content is exactly
the same as that at which one would expect the particular snbstance',to:prodnoe
narcosis, working from the existing data on its physiooobesioalproporti's, in
particular, the Overton yer coeffioient of distribution between olive oil and
water. A coincidence of this type, repeated several times, cannot be accidental.
Our experiments with, xenon, which have shown that an inert g.s.eaadisplay
distinct narcotic properties even at normal'%aroeeltrie pressures, are authenio
and conclusive proof that the inert gases act as narcotics independently of
changes in.ataospheric'pressure and that this narcotic action is possible even
if the substance is known to'ce incapable of entering into any chemical re-
actions whatsoever within the organism.
NMI: After we had read the paper on the above tests, a report by a group
of American researchers (lawrenoe and co-authors) on the narcotic
action of xenon on white mice ea3u its appearance on 6 December 1946.
Their report is In full agreement with our results.
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CWn=IAL
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1. 7ararev, B. V., "Biologiohestoye deyetviye sot pod davleniys&' ('Y'hs
Biological Action of asses Under Presenre*), published by Naval 1sdioal Aeadow,
Lenin red, 1941; laraskolog. I Tokeikolog. (Pharoaoology and Taaiooingy) 6, 29,
1943.
2. Eoobaann, X., Heffters Mb. d. exper. Pharmakol., 2, Berlin, 1936.
3. lavrence, J. H., locale, W. F., Tobias, C. A., Talpin, F. H., J. Phys$ol,
LO3, 197, 1946?
4. Oswald A., Chemisohe lCocstitutton and pharaakologische Wirkang, Berlin,
1924.
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