[Effect of chronic hypercapnia on the gastric acid secretion in rats: a comparative study in vitro (author's transl)]

Rats are made hypercapnic by breathing 8% CO2 for a week. Their stomachs, removed under anaesthesia in a hypercarbic atmosphere, are placed in a special chamber and the acidic secretion (free + titratable) is measured in vitro in relation to different parameters of the controlled atmosphere. The secretion depends on the gas composition. Under the same conditions (mucosa CO2 = 8%, serosa CO2 = 10%) the in vitro secretion of the hypercapnic subjects (n = 32) is lower than that in the normal rats (n = 27), the latter secretion decreasing more rapidly with the duration of the in vitro measurement. The differences between the hypercapnic and the control subjects are in the order of +/- 10% in titratable acidity (mEq/l/h/cm2) and +/- 20% in free acidity (muEq/l/h/cm2).