NEW IDEAS ON THYROID FUNCTION

Interest in thyroid function broadly speaking is being maintained at such a pace that a complete review of recent work would be impossible under the circumstances of these meetings. As the rather simple-minded title suggests, the writer has selected a few areas of current study for discussion. These are grouped under: Deiodination, New analogs of thyroxine, Membrane effects of thyroxine, Possible involvement of sym-pathetic nervous activity in T4 action. DEIODINATION Non-enzymatic. Deiodination reactions, both those involving living processes as well as those not dependent upon enzymatic reactions, con-tinue to receive attention. In the latter group, we have recently become interested in chemical deiodination of iodothyronines by ceric ion in acid (3). Bowden, Maclagan, and Wilkinson (7) originally noted that aromatic iodine ortho to a hydroxy or amino group was readily removed by cerium. They reported. without special comment that the iodines of 3, 5-diiodothyro