[Weight, volume and specific weight of guinea pig, rat and mouse lungs]

In the present experiments, the weight and the volume of lungs of guinea-pigs, rats, and mice were measured in order to obtain their specific weight. The volume of lungs was expressed as the algebraic difference between the weight of lungs and the weight of the same lungs previously immersed in water under a metallic wire netting of known weight. The specific weight has obtained by the ratio between the weight and the volume of lungs. Our date show that specific weight is a constant value for the three species tested. This value resulted to be modified only in pathologic conditions: increases following vagotomy, decreases following bleeding.