Concentration of Ammonia in the Gastric Venous Blood of Dogs during Acid Secretion

Abstract

AMMONIA has been detected in gastric juice during acid secretion in response to parenteral histamine in many species, including man and dog^1–4. This has been attributed to the action of urease in the gastric mucosa on endogenous urea^4,5. Conflicting observations have been made as to whether ammonia is also released into gastric venous blood during acid secretion^6,7. Turner⁸ found a rise in arterial ammonia concentration 30–60 min after histamine in those cirrhotic patients with a previous history of hepatic coma or pre-coma, but not in cirrhotic patients without such a history. He suggested that the origin of this rise might possibly be related to gastric secretion. A further attempt has therefore been made to determine whether ammonia is released into the venous blood leaving the stomach during, or after, histamine stimulated acid secretion in dogs.