Effect of cimetidine on gastric mucus glycoprotein biosynthesis

The effects of cimetidine on gastric mucus glycoprotein biosynthesis in rat gastric mucosa were investigated using organ culture technique. 2 h following oral administration of cimetidine (40 mg/kg body weight), corpus tissue was placed in the organ culture. Mucus glycoprotein synthesis was accelerated to 137% of control (p less than 0.01). In order to investigate the direct effect of cimetidine on mucus glycoprotein biosynthesis, corpus tissue was cultured in the medium containing cimetidine. 100 microM cimetidine enhanced mucus glycoprotein biosynthesis to 174% (p less than 0.01). Cimetidine was found to stimulate gastric mucus glycoprotein biosynthesis both in vivo and in vitro.