The mechanism of aggravation of indomethacin-induced gastric ulcers by adrenalectomy in the rat.

Abstract

Bilateral adrenalectomy markedly aggravated gastric ulcers in rats induced by 5 or 20 mg/kg of indomethacin. The degree of aggravation was much the same in experiments done 1 and 14 days after operation. Pretreatment with prednisolone 10 mg/kg or cortisone acetate 10 mg/kg s.c. significantly suppressed the aggravated ulceration in response to 20 mg/kg of indomethacin in these adrenalectomized rats. Deoxycorticosterone acetate 10 mg/kg had no effect on the aggravation of indomethacin-induced ulcers. Epinephrine 0.1 or 1 mg/kg s.c. markedly supppressed the indomethacin-induced ulcers in adrenalectomized rats. Removal of the adrenal medulla alone did not appreciably influence the development of indomethacin-induced ulcers. The adrenal cortex, particularly the area containing glucocorticoids, evidently plays an important role in suppression of the noxious effect of indomethacin on the rat gastric mucosa.