Ghrelin-a new gastroprotective factor in gastric mucosa.

Abstract

Ghrelin, a novel peptide expressed in the gastrointestinal tract, especially in the gastric mucosa, exerts several biological activities including the stimulation of appetite and food intake, the stimulation of intestinal motility and the release of growth hormone. The aim of this study was to examine the expression of ghrelin in gastric mucosa after its exposure to ethanol and its effects on gastric lesions induced by ethanol with and without pretreatment with indomethacin. Acute gastric lesions were induced by intragastric administration of 75% ethanol in rats pretreated with saline-vehicle or ghrelin injected intraperitoneally (i.p.) without or with i.p. pretreatment with indomethacin. At the end of experiments, the rats were anesthetized, the stomach was exposed to measure gastric blood flow (GBF), to determine the area of gastric lesions and to take biopsy samples from the oxyntic mucosa for determination of transcripts of ghrelin, tumor necrosis alpha (TNF-alpha) and transforming growth factor alpha (TGFalpha) using RT-PCR and to assess the generation of PGE(2) by RIA. Exposure of gastric mucosa to 75% ethanol resulted in numerous mucosal lesions of an area of about 115 mm(2) and in the increase of mucosal expression of TNF-alpha, PGE(2), TGFalpha and ghrelin with concomitant decrease in GBF. Exogenous ghrelin reduced dose-dependently acute gastric lesions with simultaneous attenuation of GBF and a decrease in the expression of TNF-alpha but not TGFalpha. Pretreatment with indometahcin, which suppressed the generation of PGE(2) by about 85%, augmented ethanol-induced gastric lesions and eliminated the ghrelin-induced protection of mucosa against ethanol. We conclude that ghrelin, whose mucosal expression is enhanced after exposure to ethanol, exhibits a strong gastroprotection, at least in part, due to its anti-inflammatory action mediated by prostaglandins.

• Authors: P C Konturek, T Brzozowski, R Pajdo, A Nikiforuk, S Kwiecien, I Harsch, D Drozdowicz, E G Hahn, S J Konturek
• Journal: Journal of physiology and pharmacology : an official journal of the Polish Physiological Society (J Physiol Pharmacol) Vol. 55 Issue 2 Pg. 325-36 (Jun 2004) ISSN: 0867-5910 [Print] Poland
• PMID: 15213356 (Publication Type: Journal Article)

Chemical References

• Ghrelin
• Peptide Hormones
• Transforming Growth Factor alpha
• Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha
• Ethanol
• Dinoprostone
• Indomethacin

Topics

• Animals
• Blotting, Western
• Dinoprostone (biosynthesis)
• Disease Models, Animal
• Dose-Response Relationship, Drug
• Ethanol
• Gastric Mucosa (drug effects, metabolism)
• Ghrelin
• Indomethacin
• Male
• Peptide Hormones (biosynthesis, pharmacology)
• Rats
• Rats, Wistar
• Regional Blood Flow (drug effects)
• Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction
• Stomach (blood supply, drug effects)
• Stomach Diseases (chemically induced, metabolism, prevention & control)
• Transforming Growth Factor alpha (biosynthesis)
• Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha (biosynthesis)