THE SUBJECT of inanition in relation to growth and structure was reviewed by Jackson1 in 1925. Since that time few investigators2 have concerned themselves with the possible effects of starvation on nerve cells in animals and in man. From the literature it is impossible to formulate a clear picture of the effects produced by starvation. The studies of recent, as well as earlier, writers3 lack uniformity, and results in experimental animals have been inconsistent. A similar criticism applies to other conditions, such as the effects of anoxia, fatigue, electric shock and chemical poisons. Results in some of the earlier studies of inanition are difficult to evaluate because the methods used were inadequately described. Other reports have dealt with only one animal, or with only a few sections of one brain. A few articles have been entirely speculative. To what extent the brain may suffer from severe inanition