Cimetidine may protect gastric and duodenal mucosa by increasing cell turnover [5, 17]. Mucosal cell turnover in the duodenum of 7 control rats receiving intraperitoneal injections of normal saline for 6 days was compared with 8 rats receiving cimetidine for 6 days (500 mg/kg/24 h). Cell proliferation was assessed by autoradiography after injection of tritiated thymidine. The ‘leading edge’ was defined as the highest tritium-labelled nucleus in the crypt-villus (D/V) column expressed as a percentage of the complete C/V column. Ten C/V columns were measured in each rat. The number of tritium-labelled nuclei in 10 complete C/V columns was also counted in each rat. In the controls the median leading edge was 74.8% (25% quartile 70.6%, 75% quartile 76.2%) and in the rats receiving cimetidine 73.4% (25 % quartile 72.1 %, 75 % quartile 75.9%). The median labelled cell counts were 2,052 (25 % quartile 2,008, 75% quartile 2,173) and 1,999 (25% quartile 1,822, 75% quartile 2,041), respectively. These differences were not significant (p > 0.1; Mann-Whitney U test). Duodenal mucosal proliferation was assessed in 19 rats 48 h after two subcutaneous injections of 20 mg cysteamine and in another 9 after the same dose of cysteamine plus cimetidine (500 mg/kg/24 h). The median leading edge was 90.1 % (25 % quartile 84.4%, 75 % quartile 92.8 %) in cysteamine-treated rats and 76.7% (25 % quartile 71 %, 75 % quartile 79.9%) in rats receiving cysteamine plus cimetidine. The median cell counts were 3,354 (25 % quartile 3,031,75% quartile 3,738) and 1,975 (25% quartile 1,921, 75% quartile 1,980), respectively. These differences were significant (p < 0.01). This study has not shown increased cell turnover with cimetidine. Increased tritium labelling and increased values for the leading edge were found after cysteamine and cimetidine returned these to normal.

Keywords:
Duodenum, Cimetidine
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© 1988 S. Karger AG, Basel
1988
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