Gastric cytoprotection by prostaglandins, ranitidine, and probanthine in rats. Role of endogenous prostaglandins.

Intragastric administration of aspirin (ASA) plus 0.15 M HCl to fasted rats produced typical gastric ulcers accompanied by almost complete disappearance of mucosal prostaglandins (PGs). Pretreatment with various exogenous PGs that were biologically inactive (e.g. 6-keto-PGF1 alpha or PGF2 beta) or active (PGE2 and PGI2) but used in non-antisecretory doses prevented the formation of these gastric lesions ('cytoprotection'). Besides PGs, antisecretory compounds such as ranitidine, a new H2-receptor antagonist, and probanthine were also found to be cytoprotective, even when given in non-antisecretory doses. Mucosal generation of PGs in animals treated with ASA and HCl plus ranitidine or probanthine was very low and not significantly different from those receiving only ASA and HCl. Thus, the cytoprotection appears to be the property not only of PGs but also of conventional gastric antisecretory compounds such as H2-receptor antagonists or anticholinergics. This cytoprotection can be demonstrated under conditions excluding any role of gastric secretory inhibition and in the absence of endogenous PGs.