The study has been performed in an attempt to provide further data on the supposed direct action of insulin on the kidney, based on the assumption that any effect of insulin on sodium reabsorption via co-transport should shift the dose-response curve to the furosemide administration. In five normal male volunteers plasma insulin concentration was changed by means of a hyperinsulinaemic euglycaemic clamp. The diuresis and natriuresis following intravenous injections of furosemide (in increasing doses) were measured in basal conditions and during clamp. No significant difference was found between the experiments performed in the two conditions. Our study has not identified a direct sodium-retaining effect of insulin on the furosemide-sensitive mechanisms of the renal tubule.
