Inhibition of gastric acid secretion evoked by activation of the hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus.

Electrical stimulation of the paraventricular nucleus depressed the gastric acid output of adrenalectomized male rats of which gastric acid output had been induced by insulin hypoglycemia. Electrical stimulation of the pituitary stalk produced a similar secretory response, but the response was abolished by bilateral lesion of the paraventricular nucleus. These findings allow us to speculate that the paraventricular nucleus is capable of modulating gastric acid secretion, and suggest that the nucleus has a neural connection between the neurohypophysis and the system relevant to gastric acid secretion.