Antral gastrin cells. A correlation between the number of gastrin cells and the total concentration of gastrin in serum and in antral mucosa. A pilot investigation.

Correlation between the gastrin cell number of delineated by immunohistological staining and the gastrin content in blood and antral mucosa has been studied in biopsies from the antral region of the human stomach. With a semiquantitative score system of the antral gastrin cells, we found correlation between the number of cells and the gastrin content in mucosa and serum and the grade of atrophic pyloric gastritis in 52 patients with different gastric diseases. It is concluded that further studies will be necessary before it is possible to estimate the total mass of gastrin cells and thereby compare different clinical groups.