Distribution of histamine and substance P in the wall of the dog's digestive tract

Abstract

The experiments described deal with the histamine content of the different regions of the digestive tract, from the oesophagus to the rectum, and of the different layers of the wall at each region studied. Although various authors have described the presence of histamine in the wall of the digestive tract, a systematic survey of its distribution has so far not been attempted. The paper also includes preliminary experiments on the distribution of another smooth muscle stimulating substance which resembles the substance P of Gaddum & Schild, and may be identical with it.The results of previous work on histamine in the wall of the digestive tract may be summarized as follows: Histamine has been isolated chemically from gastric and intestinal mucosa of various species (Barger & Dale, 1911;Abel & Kubota, 1919), and under conditions which exclude the possibility of bacterial origin or the formation from putrefactive changes during the extraction (Gerard, 1922; Sacks, Ivy, Burgess & Vandolah, 1932). Schild's experiments (1939) on the guinea-pig's digestive tract indicate that histamine is present along its whole length. He found that histamine was released from the oesophagus, stomach, small and large intestine during the antigen-antibody reaction of anaphylaxis. Quantitative estimates of the histamine present in the wall of the intestine and stomach have been obtained by biological assay in various species. In the small intestine the values per gram of fresh tissue were for the horse 7-8,ug. (Gaddum & Schild, 1934), for the dog 35,ug. (Gaddum, 1936), and for the guinea-pig 8-5-20ig. (Schild, 1939). The values for the horse and dog were obtained after removal of the mucosa. The histamine present in the gastric mucosa has been determined by Gavin, McHenry & Wilson (1933), by Emmelin & Kahlson (1944), and by Trach, Code & Wangensteen (1944 5-34 (average 16), pyloric region 4-16 (average 9); human beings, fundus 4-24 (average 10), antral region 3-12 (average 6). Gavin et al. showed further that the muscularis propria contained, less histamine than the mucosa, which contains 80% of the histamine of the stomach wall. Histamine appears also in the gastric juice and is thought to be derived from the mucosa histamine (for references see Babkin, 1950).The name substance P was given by Gaddum & Sohild (1934) to an unknown substance found first by Euler & Gaddum (1931) in extracts of the muscle coat from the small intestine and of brain and believed to be a polypeptide. The extracts caused a fall of arterial blood pressure in the atropinized rabbit and a slow contraction of the isolated atropinized intestinal preparation of the rabbit. Euler (1934, 1936a) found large amounts of what appeared to be the same substance in human semen and in extracts of the prostrate gland of various animals. Substance P has a stimulating action on a number of smooth muscle preparations and on smooth muscles in vivo, but it has apparently no effect on the bronchi (Euler, 1936b;Bjurstedt, Euler & Gernandt, 1940;Gernandt, 1942; Vogt, 1949Vogt, , ...

Distribution of 5‐hydroxytryptamine (serotonin, enteramine) in the wall of the digestive tract

“…This preparation has, for instance, been used in preliminary experiments for the assay of substance P by Douglas, Feldberg, Paton & Schachter (1951). They obtained extremely high values when assaying their acid-saline extracts of the dog's gastro-intestinal wall in this way.…”

Anaphylaxis and Histamine Release in the Rabbit

“…Histamine Extraction from Rabbit Ear.-The entire skin of the ear was easily stripped from the cartilage, weighed, finely divided with scissors and the histamine extracted by grinding with sand and hydrochloric acid as described by Douglas, Feldberg, Paton, and Schachter (1951). Since the cartilage contained very little histamine (<1.0 jpg./g.…”

“…It is furthermore worth noting that the effect of the local release of histamine within specific organs may be more drastic than that due to histamine injected into the blood stream. For example, in the unanaesthetized dog the response to histamine release from skin is accompanied by severe cutaneous reactions, such as erythema, pruritus, and oedema, although no such effects occur when the amounts of histamine released by the whole animal are administered systemically (Paton and Schachter, 1951). Also, in the present experiments the intravenous injection of histamine in amounts up to the lethal dose failed to increase capillary permeability as evidenced by the degree of staining of tissues in the presence of circulating pontamine blue.…”

The effect of compound 48/80 on acid gastric secretion in the cat

“…The portal vein was punctured after the venesection and 5 ml. blood removed, heparinized, centrifuged and the plasma passed through an isolated, perfused skin preparation (Feldberg & Paton, 1951) from the thigh of the same animal. Histamine release from the preparation was negligible, indicating removal of most of the histamine liberator.…”