Effects of an antiulcer drug, sucralfate (a basic aluminum salt of sulfated disaccharide), on experimental gastric lesions and gastric secretion in rats.

The effects of oral sucralfate, a basic aluminum salt of sulfated disaccharide, on various experimental gastric lesions and on gastric secretion were studied in rats. Sucralfate at 300 mg/kg potently inhibited the development of Shay ulcers and indomethacin- and aspirin-induced erosions. The drug at 1000 mg/kg also potently inhibited histamine-induced erosions. Water-immersion stress-induced erosions were inhibited with 1000 mg/kg of the drug, but the degree of inhibition was weaker than that seen in other types of erosion formation. Sucralfate at 1000 mg/kg given twice daily for 14 days significantly accelerated the spontaneous healing of acetic acid-induced ulcers. Sucralfate at over 300 mg/kg tended to increase the volume of gastric juice but had an insignificant effect on acid and pepsin output of pylorus-ligated rats. As a whole, the effects of sucralfate on experimental gastric lesions appear to be much more potent than Maalox, propantheline bromide, and cimetidine. The mechanism of action of sucralfate remains to be determined.