The effect of chronic intragastric alcohol ingestion on the pancreatic secretion of the rat.

The effect of chronic intragastric ethanol ingestion on the pancreatic secretion of rats was studied. The rats received 1 ml of 20% alcohol per 0.1 kg of body weight with gastric intubation five times weekly, and the total duration of ingestion was 10-12 weeks. Pancreatic juice was collected by cannulating the pancreatic duct under ether anesthesia; basal secretion was collected during 15 minutes, after which a further 15-minute secretion was stimulated with pancreozymin. The volume and the content of proteins, proteolytic enzymes, and trypsin inhibitors were studied. The secretion of proteins decreased significantly, while the amount of active proteolytic enzymes was increased in the pancreatic secretion of the alcohol rats. No active trypsin could be noted in either group. The amount of trypsin inhibitors decreased in the pancreatic juice of the alcohol rats compared with that of the control rats, but the decrease was relative to the decrease in the secretion of total proteins. No significant differences could be noted in the volume of the secreted pancreatic juice between the alcohol rats and the control rats. Pancreozymin increased the secretion to about twofold values, and the response to panreozymin was similar in the two groups.