Pulmonary edema and ascorbic acid loss.

Loss of ascorbic acid from lung and pulmonary edema were produced in mice by intravenous injection of either adrenaline or noradrenaline (5 mumol/kg). While adrenalectomy performed before noradrenaline administration reduced the degree of pulmonary edema, a prior dose of hexamethonium accentuated this effect. Given alone, hexamethonium caused both loss of ascorbic acid and pulmonary edema. The results show that although endogenous catecholamines can potentiate the pulmonary edema produced by either adrenaline or noradrenaline, they play no specific role in the ascorbic acid loss. The evidence suggests that lung ascorbic acid levels are decreased following the development of pulmonary edema, irrespective of how it was caused.