Model of bicarbonate secretion by resting frog stomach fundus mucosa. I. Transepithelial measurements

In the present in vitro experiments on gastric fundus mucosa of Rana esculenta we try to define the mechanism of alkaline secretion that is observed in summer frogs in the resting stomach (blockage of HCl secretion by ranitidine, 10(-5) mol/l). The transepithelial voltage and the rate of alkalinization (ASR) of an unbuffered gastric lumen perfusate was measured as a function of serosal (and mucosal) fluid composition. ASR was high (0.88 +/- S.E. 0.09 microEq.cm-2.h-1, n = 11) during serosal bath perfusion with HCO(3-)-Ringer solution, decreased slightly to 0.50 +/- 0.07 microEq.cm-2.h-1 (n = 6) in HCO(3-)-free HEPES-buffered Ringer solution of the same pH, and decreased to approximately 20% when carbonic anhydrase was inhibited by acetazolamide. While replacement of mucosal or serosal Cl- did not--within 1 h--significantly alter ASR, replacement of serosal Na+ in the presence or absence of HCO3- strongly reduced ASR, and a similar reduction was observed after serosal application of the anion transport inhibitor DIDS (4,4-diisothiocyanatostilbene-2,2-disulphonate, 2.10(-4) mol/l), the metabolic poison rotenone (10(-5) mol/l), the uncoupler dinitrophenol (10(-4) mol/l), and the Na+ pump inhibitor ouabain (10(-4) mol/l), while serosal amiloride (10(-4) mol/l) had no effect.