After abdominal surgery, luminal HCl fails to induce duodenal contractions in anaesthetized rats. Elevated tissue levels of nitric oxide (NO) and prostaglandins possibly contribute to this observation. The aim of this study was to compare the effects of luminal capsaicin (1.2 mg mL-1), ethanol (15%) and high partial pressure of CO2 (>250 mmHg) with those of HCl (10 mM) in anaesthetized rats. Motility (intraluminal pressure), mucosal permeability [blood-to-lumen clearance of 51Cr-EDTA (51Chromium-labelled ethylenediaminetetraacetate)] and duodenal mucosal bicarbonate secretion (DMBS) were recorded. Three groups of animals were studied: (1) controls, (2) pretreatment with the NO synthase inhibitor N-nitro-L-arginine-methyl-ester (L-NAME) and (3) pretreatment with the cyclo-oxygenase inhibitor indomethacin. Neither capsaicin, ethanol, CO2 nor HCl induced duodenal contractions or affected DMBS in control rats. However, L-NAME induced duodenal contractions that were augmented by capsaicin, ethanol and HCl, but not by CO2. Indomethacin also induced contractions that were reversibly diminished by capsaicin and HCl, but not by ethanol or CO2. Significant increases in mucosal permeability occurred during ethanol perfusion in indomethacin- and L-NAME pretreated rats. In conclusion, NO probably plays a key role in preventing duodenal contractions in response to luminally HCl, capsaicin and ethanol. The HCl-induced effect on motility appears to be independent of CO2 and is not caused by alteration in mucosal integrity.

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