Somatostatin and gastrin content of gastric antral mucosa in ulcer disease

Gastrin and somatostatin containing cells are abundant in the gastric antral mucosa suggesting a role for these peptides in gastric physiology, presumably acid secretion. The concentration of these peptides in antral mucosa in ulcer disease is controversial, some finding normal levels, others decreased somatostatin levels. Biopsies of antral mucosa from patients with ulcer disease and non-ulcer dyspepsia were obtained at endoscopy, and somatostatin and gastrin concentration were measured by specific radioimmunoassay. Levels were similar in non-ulcer, duodenal and gastric ulcer patients but prior treatment with H₂-receptor antagonists in duodenal ulcer patients led to a fall in somatostatin and a rise in gastrin mucosal levels. It is thus unlikely that a lack of somatostatin or an increase in gastrin are factors in the pathogenesis of duodenal ulcer, but the cells may behave abnormally in ulcer disease.