STIMULATION OF GASTRIC PEPSIN BY HISTAMINE

In studying gastric secretion, as many da-ta as possible should be obtained. Although the determination of the enzyme secretory power of the stomach is not as important as the determination of the acid secretory power, it has been pointed out by Polland and Bloomfield (1) that in certain cases the measurement of pepsin output may be a more delicate index of gastric damage than the measurement of acid values. Since the histamine test meal has come into use, it has been generally assumed that the enzyme secretion of the gastric juice is stimulated by histamine. However, recent observations by Gilman and Cowgill (2), and inde-pendently by Babkin (3) on pepsin secretion after histamine stimulation indicate that histamine does not stimulate pepsin secretion. Using dogs with Pavlov or Heidenhain pouches, it was found that with the increased volume of secretion in response to histamine there was a relative decrease in pepsin concentration, with the result that the total output of pepsin remained constant. They also noted that after the first stimulation b