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BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Gastric hyperacidity is frequent gastric disorders. However, little is known about the changes in the expression of somatostatin (SOM) in the the coeliac-superior mesenteric ganglion (CSMG) neurons supplying prepyloric area of the porcine stomach during inflammation induced by intragastric infusion of hydrochloric acid. The present study was designed to define localization and chemical expression of somatostatin in the sympathetic perikarya supplying the porcine stomach prepyloric area in physiological state and during gastritis induced by intragastric infusion of hydrochloric acid. METHODS: Ten juvenile female pigs of the Large White Polish breed were used. The animals were divided into two groups: control and animals with hydrochloric acid infusion (HCl). The neuronal retrograde marker Fast Blue (FB) was injected into the anterior prepyloric wall of the stomach of all animals. 23 days after FB injection, the animals of HCI group were introduced into a state of general anesthesia and given intragastrically 5 ml/kg of 0.25 M hydrochloric acid solution. 28 days after FB injections all animals were deeply anaesthetized, transcardially perfused with buffered paraformaldehyde and tissue samples were collected. The CSMG cryostat sections were stained immunocytochemically for SOM and TH (tyrosine hydroxylase). RESULTS: In the control group 14.97±1.57% out of 200 FBpositive CSMG neurons contained SOM. Inflammation induced by intragastric infusion of hydrochloric acid resulted in upregulation of the SOM-IR neurons to 29.63±0.85%. All SOM-IR neurons in both groups showed the simultaneously TH immunoreactivity. CONCLUSIONS: Increase in the expression of SOM in FB-possitive neurons of the HCL group may suggest its participation in the protective mechanisms of neurons in different pathological processes, such as gastric hyperacidity