Subcutaneous injection of aqueous extract from animal testes restores physical strength, mental acuity, and general functional capacity in older men through exogenous supplementation of a 'vital substance' secreted by the testes.
The vigor-restoration claim is the core empirical claim of Brown-Séquard’s 1889 announcement. It rests on his self-assessment of bodily and mental function before and after the five-injection course in spring 1889. The claim is refuted by modern reconstruction of the dose (Cussons et al, Med J Aust 2002): the testosterone delivered was roughly 10,000-fold below any therapeutic level, and any reported clinical effect was necessarily a placebo response. The claim is the historical template for the modern category of subjective rejuvenation claims supported by self-report and uncontrolled clinical observation.
Appears in
Sources
- Effets produits chez l'homme par des injections sous-cutanées d'un liquide retiré des testicules frais de cobaye et de chien — Brown-Séquard, Charles-Édouard. 'Effets produits chez l'homme par des injections sous-cutanées d'un liquide retiré des testicules frais de cobaye et de chien.' *Comptes rendus des séances de la Société de Biologie* (Paris). Communication of 1 June 1889. (English: 'Effects produced in man by subcutaneous injections of a liquid removed from the fresh testicles of guinea-pig and dog.') Specific volume and page numbers vary across modern reviews; the original *Comptes rendus* volumes for 1889 are held in major medical-history libraries and the Société de Biologie archive.
- The effects produced on man by subcutaneous injections of a liquid obtained from the testicles of animals — Brown-Séquard, Charles-Édouard. 'The effects produced on man by subcutaneous injections of a liquid obtained from the testicles of animals.' *The Lancet* 1889;2:105-107.