Gastric acid secretion in the cynomolgus monkey

Gastric acid secretion was measured in male and female cynomolgus monkeys under basal conditions and in response to intravenous administration of pentagastrin (PG). There were no statistically significant differences between males and females in either basal or PG-stimulated gastric acid output. Neither were differences between males and females statistically significant when adjusted according to body weight. For both sexes combined, basal acid output was 17 +/- 20 muEq/h. Intravenous infusion of PG stimulated gastric acid secretion at dose rates of 1 micrograms/kg/h and greater. Maximal stimulation occurred at dose rates of 10 and 100 micrograms/kg/h, indicating gastric acid secretion plateaus above PG doses of 10 micrograms/kg. Acid secretion values in response to 100 micrograms of PG/kg/h for both sexes combined were 571 +/- 132 and 400 +/- 135 muEq/kg/h for peak acid output and maximum acid output, respectively. These data suggest that the cynomolgus monkey may be a useful model for gastric physiology studies of relevance to human beings.