Increased rate of urea formation following removal of renal tissue.

T HE experiments presented here show that the rate of urea formation is accelerated in rats during the first 24 hours after removal of three quarters or all of the total renal tissue, and that the greater the amount of kidney excised the greater is the quantity of urea formed. The observations were made on rats in which urea formation from food protein was excluded by subsistence on a calorically adequate diet containing no protein. Urea formation was calculated for consecutive 4-hour intervals, the amount of urea formed being derived from changes in the body urea content and from the quantity of urea excreted in the urine.