Scanning electron microscopic observations on gastric mucus secretion in rats, and the effects of tetraprenylacetone

Mucus secretion in the gastric mucosa of rats was studied with a scanning electron microscope. After stimulation, two types of mucus secretion were observed: exocytosis and apical expulsion. Prolonged administration of tetraprenylacetone (TPA) significantly increased the number of mucus-secreting cells in both the gastric corpus and antrum 12 h after the last administration of TPA. In the secreting cells, apical expulsion was significantly more frequent among TPA-treated than in untreated rats. TPA also significantly increased the hexosamine concentration in both gastric corpus and antrum. These findings indicate that TPA stimulates both the content and the secretion of gastric mucus, and that its secretion is chiefly through apical expulsion.